2024-09-12 20:30

WASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly voted on Thursday to approve legislation to tighten rules limiting Chinese content in vehicles qualifying for U.S. electric vehicle tax credits. The House voted 217 to 192 to approve the bill, which has not been taken up by the Senate, to tighten the definition of Chinese components that make vehicles ineligible for U.S. EV tax credits. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents General Motors (GM.N) , opens new tab, Toyota Motor (7203.T) , opens new tab, Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) , opens new tab, Hyundai (005380.KS) , opens new tab and other car companies, said the bill would result in fewer vehicles qualifying and would mean aggressive rules on vehicle emissions and EV targets would need to be rolled back. The automaker group CEO, John Bozzella, said those standards were based in part on the availability of EV tax credits and if the incentives are eliminated "the automotive industrial base faces a serious economic and national security risk from China, the U.S. becomes less competitive, and the rug is pulled out from consumers." The bill, sponsored by Representative Carol Miller, would tighten the definition of a so-called "Foreign Entity of Concern" that applies to China and other countries. She said it would "ensure that Chinese companies can no longer benefit from electric vehicles tax credits meant for U.S. manufacturers." The rules required under an August 2022 law are designed to wean the U.S. electric vehicle battery supply chain away from China. The U.S. Treasury and Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately comment. Currently, 22 of the 113 EV or plug-in hybrid models for sale in the United States are eligible for the EV tax credit - and just 13 get the full $7,500 credit, Bozzella said. In May, the U.S. Treasury gave automakers additional flexibility on battery mineral requirements for electric vehicle tax credits on some crucial trace minerals from China, such as graphite. The department said it would give automakers until 2027 to remove some hard-to-trace minerals like graphite contained in anode materials and critical minerals contained in electrolyte salts, binders, and additives. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-house-passes-bill-targeting-china-that-would-limit-ev-tax-credits-2024-09-12/

2024-09-12 20:07

DAKAR, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Senegal was hit by a nationwide electricity outage on Thursday following an accident at a power station in the capital, Senegal's power utility Senelec said in a statement. The U.S. has committed over half a billion dollars in recent years to upgrade Senegal's electricity grid as part of a 2018 deal to improve access to reliable power. The accident at the 90,000-volt Hann station triggered a wider outage on an interconnection grid, disrupting electricity distribution across the country, Senelec said. It did not give any further details about the accident. Since a severe power crisis a decade ago that crippled businesses and led to violent riots, Senegal has carried out reforms and invested heavily in generation and transmission to improve power supply. In 2018, the U.S. signed a deal to give Senegal $550 million to improve access to reliable and affordable electricity. The government agreed to commit $50 million to the $600 million program. The outage reflected the ongoing power troubles facing the West African nation. A U.S. embassy spokeswoman in Senegal did not respond to a request for comment on the outage. The utility said in a statement to Reuters that power was gradually being restored to some regions, and parts of the capital, Dakar. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/senegal-hit-by-nationwide-outage-following-power-station-accident-2024-09-12/

2024-09-12 20:03

Argentina sees rising energy activity in Vaca Muerta Nabors Industries to provide new drilling rig for Tecpetrol First phase of massive $55 billion LNG project to have FID in 2025 HOUSTON/BUENOS AIRES, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Argentina reduced its energy subsidies in the first seven months of the year by $2.7 billion, Energy Secretary Eduardo Rodriguez Chirillo said on Thursday, as part of a goal to curb the government's fiscal deficit while also working to promote investment in the energy sector. The South American country aims to advance an ambitious reform package that includes guarantees for large investments, a new hydrocarbon law, and changes to its foreign exchange system aimed at securing dividend repatriations for foreign investors, all part of President Javier Milei's move to secure capital. Rodriguez Chirillo told businessmen in Houston that Argentina achieved an energy trade balance surplus of $2.9 billion between January and July, a change from deficits in previous years. "Our mission in the new model is that the investor can design his own model ... and knows that he has the right to export," said Rodriguez Chirillo. The governor of Neuquen province, home to the nation's giant Vaca Muerta shale oil and gas reserves, said at the meeting that Argentina must quickly move away from foreign exchange controls to attract oil and gas investment. "We can multiply by six the (oil and gas) production we can offer to the world," Governor Rolando Figueroa said, adding that clear rules, a new legal framework and a good administration of resources are essential to achieve output goals. PROGRESSING In a sign of a new wave of investment starting, oil and gas producers are announcing output expansions, midstream projects including terminals and key pipelines for exports, and the arrival of much-expected drilling equipment, officials said. "A lot of capital is needed (for Argentina's energy sector), not only from us," said Horacio Marin, CEO of Argentina's state energy company YPF. "We also are working to secure foreign investment in Argentina." An oil pipeline YPF is building from the Vaca Muerta shale region will have capacity of 350,000 barrels per day next year, and greater than 700,000 bpd in 2028 once a second phase is completed, expanding the nation's crude export capacity, Marin said. YPF is in talks with U.S. pipeline giant Energy Transfer (ET.N) , opens new tab about becoming the operator, Marin added. A spokesperson for Energy Transfer did not reply to a request for comment. LNG IN THE EYE At least two large projects that could turn Argentina into an exporter of liquefied natural gas are being planned: one involving Malaysia's Petronas (PETRA.UL) and another by Tecpetrol that could include modular onshore facilities. The first phase of the flagship $55 billion LNG project between Petronas and YPF is expected to have a final investment decision between the third and the fourth quarters of next year, Marin said. The capacity of the first phase will be up to 10 million tons per year with first output, to come entirely from floating facilities, expected between 2029 and 2030. A second phase to involve onshore facilities would inaugurate an additional 15 million to 20 million tons per year by 2032, he added. Energy producer Pluspetrol is interested in participating in the two LNG projects, said Julian Escuder, the company's country manager. Pluspetrol plans to drill up to 25 wells per year in Vaca Muerta between 2025 and 2029, Escuder said. Nabors Industries is supplying a drilling rig for work in Vaca Muerta's Fortin de Piedra area, Tecpetrol CEO Ricardo Markous said at the meeting. "We have the mandate to bring rigs into Argentina," said Nabors' vice president of global drilling, Travis Purvis, during the conference. The U.S. drilling firm moved a rig to Vaca Muerta this year, and two more are on their way to the country. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/argentinas-energy-subsidies-cut-government-addresses-fiscal-deficit-official-2024-09-12/

2024-09-12 19:40

Tripoli, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The UN Libya mission said on Thursday that Libyan factions did not reach a final agreement in the talks aimed at resolving the central bank crisis that has slashed oil output and exports. The two-day consultations to solve the crisis hosted by UNSMIL were between delegates from the Benghazi-based House of Representatives, the High Council of State and the Presidential Council, which are both based in Tripoli. However, the Mission statement did not mention the presence of the delegation of the Presidential Council on the second day of the talks. The Presidential Council, based in Tripoli, had only rarely intervened directly in Libyan politics before its head Mohammed al-Menfi moved in August to replace veteran central bank Governor Sadiq al-Kabir, which led eastern factions to order a halt of oil flows across Libyan oilfields in protest. Libya's two legislative chambers agreed this month to jointly appoint a central bank governor, potentially defusing a battle for control of the country's oil revenue. The Mission welcomed on Thursday the progress made between the two legislative bodies "on the principles and timeline that should govern the interim period leading to the appointment of a new governor and board of directors for the Central Bank". Libyan oil exports fell around 81% last week, Kpler data showed on Wednesday, as the National Oil Corporation cancelled cargoes amid a crisis over control of Libya's central bank and oil revenue. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/libyan-factions-have-not-reached-final-agreement-central-bank-crisis-un-libya-2024-09-12/

2024-09-12 19:22

Sept 12 (Reuters) - About 42% of crude oil production and 53% of natural gas output in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico were shut-in on Thursday in the wake of Hurricane Francine, the U.S. offshore energy regulator said. Francine tore through the U.S. Gulf of Mexico's prime oil and gas producing areas and slammed into the Louisiana coast as a Category 2 hurricane on Wednesday night. The storm toppled trees, flooded coastal areas and cut power to homes and businesses in four southern states. Energy producers had shut-in 730,000 barrels per day of oil production and nearly 992 million cubic feet of natural gas from Gulf waters, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said. The losses helped U.S. oil futures gain 2.5% to $69.01 per barrel on Thursday and added nearly 4% to natural gas futures, which rose to $2.357 per million British thermal units, both in afternoon trading. In all, the storm likely disrupted about 1.5 million barrels of total U.S. oil production, UBS analysts estimated, and would cut September's output by about 50,000 barrels per day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/over-40-us-gulf-mexico-oil-output-shut-in-by-francine-2024-09-12/

2024-09-12 18:58

Canadian dollar falls 0.1% against the greenback Trades in a range of 1.3566 to 1.3604 Price of U.S. oil settles 2.5% higher Canadian bond yields mixed TORONTO, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday as support from recent short-covering faded and investors bet the Bank of Canada would continue to cut interest rates in an effort to boost the domestic economy. The loonie was trading 0.1% lower at 1.3590 per U.S. dollar, or 73.58 U.S. cents, after moving in a range of 1.3566 to 1.3604. On Wednesday, the currency touched its weakest intraday level since Aug. 21 at 1.3622. "You are seeing the (Canadian) dollar start to soften a little bit and we wouldn't be shocked if that is the trend you continue to see here - some Canadian dollar underperformance against the U.S. dollar for the next number of months as the Bank of Canada continues to ease," said Benjamin Reitzes, Canadian rates and macro strategist at BMO Capital Markets. Speculators have cut their bearish bets on the Canadian dollar to the lowest level since April, the latest data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed on Friday. A reduced short position could leave speculators less vulnerable to rallies in the currency. "The reality is, positioning is a little bit more square and the Canadian backdrop is materially weaker than the U.S," Reitzes said. Growth in Canada's economy is likely to fall well short of the BoC's forecast in the third quarter, economists said this week. Analysts say that recent declines in the price of oil, one of Canada's major exports, have also weighed on the loonie. Still, U.S. crude futures rallied on Thursday, settling 2.5% higher at $68.97 a barrel, as producers assessed the damage to output in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after Hurricane Francine tore through offshore oil producing areas. Canadian bond yields were mixed, with the 2-year down less than a basis point at 3.018%. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/c-trades-near-3-week-low-short-positions-strike-better-balance-2024-09-12/