2024-09-13 07:07

ABUJA, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Nigerian communities are claiming 505 billion naira ($310 million) in damages from Shell, which they accuse of breaching an existing court order by striking a deal to sell its onshore assets in the Niger Delta, court papers showed on Friday. Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab is set to exit Nigeria's onshore oil and gas sector after agreeing in January to sell its business to a consortium of five mostly local companies for $2.4 billion. But more than 1,200 representatives of Ilaje communities in the Niger Delta asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the deal, arguing that Shell was violating a December 2023 ruling that suspended any assets sale until a compensation lawsuit was concluded. The community has a pending lawsuit against Shell, which it accuses of causing an oil spill that damaged waterways and farms. Shell has long maintained that such spills were mostly due to theft of oil and interference with pipelines. In the court papers, the community said Shell should be penalised for going ahead with asset sale "when the plaintiffs and the host of their community members have remained in perpetual suffering over the failure of the defendants to obey the preservative orders of a competent court." Shell did not immediately comment. It was not immediately clear when the court would hear the case. The oil major has faced a string of lawsuits locally and abroad from communities demanding environmental restoration or compensation for land damaged by historical oil spills. Shell's asset sale is yet to be approved by the energy regulator and the petroleum minister. ($1 = 1,630.0000 naira) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/nigerian-communities-seek-310-mln-shell-want-asset-sale-stopped-2024-09-13/

2024-09-13 06:49

Sept 13 (Reuters) - Britain's National Grid (NG.L) , opens new tab said on Friday it had agreed to sell its Electricity System Operator (ESO) to the UK government for 630 million pounds ($827.95 million), including debt. The energy infrastructure operator said it expected to complete the deal by Oct. 1, when the Labour government and energy regulator Ofgem aim to establish an independent National Energy System Operator (NESO). The NESO will be a publicly-owned, independent body, with new roles across electricity and gas to oversee the national energy network. "We need to move Britain off expensive, insecure fossil fuel markets, and onto clean, cheap homegrown power that we control. This is how we reduce bills in the long term, strengthen our energy independence and support skilled jobs across the country," Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said in a statement. ($1 = 0.7609 pounds) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/national-grid-sell-electricity-system-operator-827-mln-deal-2024-09-13/

2024-09-13 06:43

CANBERRA, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Workers at Australia's largest sugar maker, Wilmar Sugar and Renewables, voted to accept a pay offer, the company said on Friday, ending a months-long industrial dispute that disrupted sugar production. Wilmar's eight mills churn out more than 2 million metric tons of sugar worth around $1 billion a year, over half the country's total, most of which is exported. Industrial action from May delayed the start of the cane crushing season and led to several shutdowns after it had begun. That raised the risk that the full harvest might not be processed before bad end-of-year weather made it impossible to bring in cane. Fifty-five per cent of workers voted in favour of a three-year deal that gives more than 1,300 of them a one-off bonus, a 12% pay increase by year-end and 4% more in December 2025, Wilmar said. "It draws a line under a period that impacted not only our business and our people, but the growers and harvesting operators who are so critical to the sugar supply chain," a spokesperson for the company said. Wilmar's mills form the economic centre of communities on Australia's hot and humid northeast coast, where sugar is a major industry. "The deal doesn't give us everything our members were asking for, but it's a huge win for our members and the community," said Australian Workers' Union official Jim Wilson. A pay dispute at another mill, Tully Sugar, owned by Chinese conglomerate COFCO (600737.SS) , opens new tab, also ended last month with workers accepting a deal. "It's great to have this issue finally resolved," said Owen Menkens, the chairman of CANEGROWERS, an industry group. "It has dragged on for far too long, has delayed cane crushing across half of the industry, and caused great anxiety to growers and harvesting contractors," he said. Wilmar said that so far this crushing season its mills had processed about 6.3 million metric tons of sugar cane, around 40% of the estimated crop. Wilmar is owned by Singapore's Wilmar International (WLIL.SI) , opens new tab. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/workers-accept-pay-deal-australias-biggest-sugar-maker-ending-labour-dispute-2024-09-13/

2024-09-13 06:41

BERLIN, Sept 13 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz embarks on his first visit to Central Asia on Sunday, travelling to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as Berlin looks for new markets and sources of energy and minerals in the wake of the Ukraine war. He already has some key deals under his belt. Kazakh crude started flowing through the Druzhba pipeline last year, keeping Berlin’s Schwedt refinery running after the European Union imposed sanctions on Moscow, and Russian supplies dropped off. "This marked a completely new direction in bilateral cooperation, as no Kazakh oil had previously flowed through this pipeline," a Kazakh government official said. Scholz's visit will give some clues on where Germany wants to take the relationship next. On top of the oil, Kazakhstan has more than two trillion cubic meters of natural gas reserves, according to Kazakh government data. Many German companies who shut down businesses in Russia - historically a key hub for Central Asia - have set up their own sales offices and operations across the region, Eduard Kinsbruner, Central Asia regional director at the German Eastern Business Association, said. German groups have been negotiating contracts in chemicals, skilled labour, renewable energy, logistics and education among other sectors, Kinsbruner added. Many of those contracts are expected to be signed during Scholz's visit, he added. HYDROGEN HOPES Kazakhstan - seven times the size of Germany - has lots of space, as well as sun and wind, for energy projects. In Kazakhstan's southwestern region of Mangystau, Germany-based SVEVIND Energy Group is developing what it says is one of the world’s largest green hydrogen projects, with a planned 40 gigawatts of renewable power capacity. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visited in June last year. Germany's new push is already showing up in the statistics. In 2023, Kazakhstan exported 8.5 million tons of oil to Germany, accounting for 11.7% of Germany's total oil imports, and up from round 6.5 million tons before the Ukraine war. That jump made Kazakhstan Germany's third-largest supplier after Norway and the United States, data from Germany's Federal Statistics Office showed. German investments in Kazakhstan rose by 64% last year compared with 2022, according to data from Kazakh Invest, a government agency. "Because of the regimes and the political system, Central Asia wasn’t a top priority for Germany," Stefan Meister, a Central Asia expert at the German Council on Foreign Relations, said. "But the war has fundamentally changed this dynamic." Trade between Kazakhstan and Germany almost doubled after Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, with turnover rising by 89.5% in 2022 compared with the previous year, according to data from the German Eastern Business Association. 'LOOK TO THE FUTURE' "When we look to the future, we see great potential," a German government official said ahead of the trip. "We will need gas for two more decades. The tenders for new gas power plants (in Germany), which will all be hydrogen-ready, are currently in their final stages. This means they will need to get gas from somewhere." Behind all the new plans, there are still old historical and geographic realities. Kazakhstan may offer an alternative to Russia for Germany. But it is also weighed down by an outdated Soviet-era grid and complex tangle of red tape. "If it (massive renewables expansion) is complicated in Germany, it's much more complicated in a country like Kazakhstan," said Thomas O'Donnell, an energy expert at Berlin's Free University. Russia still has significant influence in Kazakhstan, which has avoided taking sides in the Ukraine war. Most tellingly of all, that Druzhba pipeline carrying Kazakh oil to Berlin, crosses over Russian territory. So a relationship with Russia, of a sort, will persist. "On one hand, we support Ukraine," said Meister of the German Council on Foreign Relations. "On the other, our businesses still need resources." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/germanys-scholz-seeks-central-asian-energy-ties-shadow-ukraine-war-2024-09-13/

2024-09-13 06:37

Brent and WTI both set for weekly gains US offshore oil industry reawakens after Francine shut-ins US oil and gas rig count rises by most in a year Benchmarks hit multi-year lows this week on demand fears NEW YORK, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Friday as U.S. Gulf of Mexico crude production resumed following Hurricane Francine and rising data showed a weekly rise in U.S. rig count. Brent crude futures settled at $71.61 a barrel, down 36 cents, or 0.5%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) settled at $68.65 a barrel, down 32 cents, or 0.5%. As U.S. Gulf Coast production and refining activity resumes, investors have opted to offload oil contracts going into the weekend, said Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York. "You could come back Monday and everything is fine - the refineries are running at 100%, everyone is back on the platform, oil comes back and gasoline is coming out of the refinery - and the market could potentially pull back exponentially," Yawger said. For the week, oil futures finished higher following sharp storm-related increases early in the week, breaking a streak of declines. Brent logged an increase of about 0.8% since the close of last Friday's session, while WTI registered a roughly 1.4% gain. Official data showed that, as of Thursday, the storm nearly shut in 42% of oil production in the region that accounts for about 15% of U.S. output. "These cuts are expected to prove brief and within the broader context are unlikely to spur much movement in the crude balances given the importance of shale production that accounts for the major portion of U.S. output," Ritterbusch said. Crude prices also took a hit from the U.S. rig count from energy services group Baker Hughes (BKR.O) , opens new tab, which reported the biggest weekly rise in oil and natural gas rig in a year. The oil and gas rig count rose by eight in the week to Sept. 13 to 590, returning to mid-June levels. The increase was the biggest since the week to Sept. 15, 2023. , , . Crude oil rigs rose by five to 488 this week, while gas rigs rose by three to 97. Also on the week, money managers cut their net long crude futures and options positions in New York and London by 27,493 contracts to 59,741 in the week to Sept. 10, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission said. Both the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the International Energy Agency lowered their demand growth forecasts this week, citing economic struggles in China, the world's largest oil importer. U.S. oil stockpiles also rose across the board last week as crude imports grew and exports dipped, while fuel demand weakened, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Investors are looking ahead now to the U.S. Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting next week. It is widely expected to cut interest rates on Wednesday. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-extend-recovery-rally-cap-volatile-week-2024-09-13/

2024-09-13 06:35

Sept 13 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank has raised its year-end target for the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab index to 5,750 points from 5,500, citing rising stock buybacks, strong corporate earnings and robust inflows, boosted by strong risk appetite. "We see S&P 500 earnings growth continuing to run robustly in the low double digits, in line with typical growth rates outside of recessions," Deutsche Bank strategists said in a note on Sept. 12. The new target represents a 2.75% upside to S&P's close of 5,595.76 on Thursday. Rising U.S. rate cut expectations this year and the hype surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) have boosted the index, with many brokerages lifting their annual targets for the benchmark and some expecting it to end 2024 as high as 6,000. In May, Deutsche Bank raised its year-end target for the S&P to 5,500, banking on strong corporate earnings to support equity valuations. The brokerage said a recent pullback in stocks in August due to fears of a weakening labor market and de-rating of technology stocks seems "done" for now, with positioning falling back in line with earnings growth. It added that fears of a cooling labor market have been put to rest with August payrolls growth steadying on a year-to-date basis. Some aspects that will strengthen the market include a move from "de- to re-stocking", a pickup in capital expenditure outside tech stocks, broader manufacturing recovery, and a rise in consumer confidence, strategists led by Binky Chadha, chief U.S. equity and global strategist at Deutsche Bank, said. The brokerage expects share buybacks to rise to about $1.2 trillion next year as they keep up with earnings, from the current $1 trillion. Inflows into equities have been strong over the last four months and have defied typical seasonality, "which raises prospective corporate earnings and equity returns," it said. Deutsche Bank also reiterated its earnings per share (EPS) forecast for S&P 500 companies at $258 for 2024 and $285 for 2025. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/deutsche-bank-raises-sp-500-year-end-target-5750-5500-2024-09-13/