2024-09-14 19:44

Sept 14 (Reuters) - Brazilian miner Vale (VALE3.SA) , opens new tab said on Saturday that it is conducting checks on a dam after a routine inspection identified surface cracks but noted that the structure’s stability conditions remain unchanged. In a securities filing, the company said the issue concerns the Forquilha III dam at the Fabrica iron ore mine, located in the city of Ouro Preto, in the southeastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. According to Vale, the dam is at emergency level 3, the highest level among its dams, and is under permanent monitoring, with a downstream containment structure in place and the self-rescue zone evacuated, without any communities present. "The company keeps competent authorities informed and executes an action plan for investigation and corrections, as necessary," it said, adding that it remains committed to seeking the reduction of the emergency level. In 2015, the collapse of a tailings dam at a Vale and BHP (BHP.AX) , opens new tab joint venture in the town of Mariana, also in Minas Gerais, caused a wave of toxic waste that killed 19 people, left hundreds homeless, flooded forests, and polluted a river. On Wednesday, the company said it expects to reach a final agreement with authorities in October regarding reparations related to the incident. In 2019, another dam accident involving Vale in the city of Brumadinho killed hundreds and caused severe environmental damage. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/brazils-vale-says-routine-check-revealed-cracks-dam-stability-unchanged-2024-09-14/

2024-09-14 19:15

HOUSTON, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Nearly 30% of U.S. Gulf of Mexico crude oil production and 41% of its natural gas production remained offline on Saturday following Hurricane Francine, the U.S. offshore energy regulator said. Francine churned through prime oil and gas producing areas in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and slammed into Louisiana with up to 100 miles per hour (161 kph) winds. The midweek storm toppled trees, flooded coastal areas and knocked out power across four states. There were some 37,000 customers in Louisiana without power on Saturday. A survey of energy producers showed more than 522,000 barrels of oil production and 755 million cubic feet of natural gas remained offline on Saturday, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said. Cumulative offshore production losses this week due to Francine total 1.82 million barrels of crude oil and 4.12 billion cubic feet of natural gas, according to BSEE estimates. There were 52 oil and gas platforms unmanned by energy workers on Saturday, about 14% of the total, down from 171 evacuated offshore platforms at peak earlier in the week, the offshore regulator said. Two of Chevron's (CVX.N) , opens new tab platforms were operating at reduced rates due to an onshore gas plant disruption, the company said on Saturday. Full production at the two - Jack/St. Malo and Big Foot - will resume after the onshore disruption is resolved, it said. Chevron did not identify the operator of the gas plant. The second-largest U.S. oil producer said it was continuing to return workers and restore oil production at its Anchor and Tahiti platforms that were shut-in ahead of hurricane Francine. Initial assessments show neither suffered significant damages, Chevron said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/nearly-30-us-gulf-mexico-oil-output-offline-after-storm-2024-09-14/

2024-09-14 19:13

CAIRO, Sept 14 (Reuters) - At least three people were killed and 49 others wounded in a collision between two passenger trains in Zagazig city northeast of Cairo, Egypt's health ministry said on Saturday. Five of the injured are in unstable condition, the ministry added. The injured were taken to hospitals and "rescue operations are ongoing," the ministry said. The railway authority said in a statement that one of the trains was heading from Zagazig to Ismailia, while the other was on its way from the city of Mansoura to Zagazig. Egypt has been working for years to develop its ageing transportation network, modernise trains, and develop railway lines. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/least-two-killed-29-injured-egypt-train-collision-2024-09-14/

2024-09-14 19:10

ATHENS, Sept 14 (Reuters) - The operation has started to tow a Greek-registered oil tanker stranded in the Red Sea after an attack by Houthi militants last month, a shipping source told Reuters on Saturday. Towing the 900-foot (274.2-metre) MV Sounion to safety is the first step in a risky operation to salvage the vessel that caught fire after it was repeatedly attacked on Aug. 21. The second step is the transfer of its cargo of about 1 million barrels of crude oil. Saudi Arabia, a key player in the region, will offer its assistance with that project, sources have said. Any oil spill could be one of the largest from a ship, risking catastrophic environmental damage in an area that is particularly dangerous to enter. An initial effort to salvage the vessel was paused earlier this month due to safety reasons. At least two tugboats owned by a Greek-based salvage company are involved in the latest towing attempt, sources told Reuters on Thursday. Aspides, the European Union's naval mission in the Red Sea, said on Saturday that its assets were in the area to protect the vessels involved in the operation. It described the operation as a "complex endeavour". "Creating a secure environment is necessary for the tugboats to conduct the towing operation," Aspides said in a statement on Facebook. "The salvage operation of the MV Sounion is essential in order to avert a potential environmental disaster in the region. To achieve this, several public and private actors are working together." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/operation-tow-stricken-tanker-avert-spill-starts-red-sea-shipping-source-2024-09-14/

2024-09-14 16:37

LIMA, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Peru's government said on Saturday it has approved financing totaling $1.75 billion for struggling state oil firm Petroperu, part of an effort to help the company manage mounting debt and dwindling cash. After Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzen this month called for "drastic measures," Petroperu's board of directors resigned over issues including what board members called the company's financial instability. The measures announced on Saturday in a government decree included a short-term credit line of up to $1 billion, as well as $750 million in "transitory financial support." "The purpose of this emergency decree is to adopt extraordinary and urgent economic and financial measures to overcome Petroperu's financial situation," the decree said. The government also called for the Economy Ministry to take over Petroperu's debt payments in the second half of 2024 corresponding to bonds and loans intended to finance the modernization of the Talara refinery. Petroperu is the country's main fuel supplier, and has said it needs at least $2.5 billion to continue running. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/peru-approves-175-billion-financing-state-oil-firm-2024-09-14/

2024-09-14 14:53

BAGHDAD, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Iraqi oil minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani is in stable condition after receiving emergency heart surgery during an official visit to the United States, an oil ministry official who is part of the Iraqi delegation said on Saturday. Abdel-Ghani arrived in the U.S. earlier this week on a trip aimed at courting U.S. companies to invest in Iraq’s energy sector. The oil ministry official told Reuters he fell ill and was rushed to hospital during the trip and underwent heart catheterization surgery. "He’s out from the operating theatre and is in a stable condition," the official said. Abdel-Ghani and other oil ministry officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iraqi-oil-minister-stable-after-surgery-us-official-says-2024-09-14/