2025-09-19 12:42
Iraq gives preliminary nod to resume pipeline exports, sources say Deal could add 230,000 barrels per day of fresh oil supplies Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has been shut since March 2023 BAGHDAD, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Iraq, OPEC's second-largest producer, has given preliminary approval to a plan to resume pipeline oil exports from its semi-autonomous Kurdistan region through Turkey following delays to a hoped-for restart, sources familiar with the talks told Reuters. The deal between Iraq's federal government, the Kurdistan Regional Government and international oil companies could add at least 230,000 barrels per day of fresh supplies at a time OPEC producers are raising output to regain market share. Sign up here. Iraq exports around 3.4 million barrels of oil per day from its southern ports, but the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline in the north has been shut since March 2023 after an arbitration court ruled that Turkey should pay $1.5 billion in damages for unauthorised exports between 2014 and 2018. Turkey is appealing the ruling. Ankara has since said it is willing to restart exports, but the flows remain suspended because of ongoing legal and political disputes between Baghdad, the Kurdistan Regional Government in Erbil, and the international oil companies. Iraq's cabinet has given preliminary approval to a plan to resume exports, and international oil companies operating in Kurdistan have also tentatively agreed, two sources familiar with the talks said. APIKUR, a group representing firms including Genel Energy (GENL.L) , opens new tab, DNO (DNO.OL) , opens new tab and Gulf Keystone (GKP.L) , opens new tab, declined to comment, citing ongoing negotiations. "Discussions have intensified and we're closer to a tripartite agreement... than we've ever been, as all are showing flexibility," an executive from one of the international oil companies said. Under the preliminary plan, the KRG would commit to delivering at least 230,000 bpd to Iraq's state oil marketer SOMO, while keeping additional 50,000 bpd for local use. An independent trader would handle sales from Ceyhan using SOMO's official prices. For each barrel sold, $16 would be transferred to an escrow account and distributed proportionally to producers. The remainder of the revenue would go to SOMO. The draft plan also does not specify how or when producers will receive about $1 billion in unpaid arrears, accumulated between September 2022 and March 2023. Luke Clements, CFO of Genel Energy, told a conference in Oslo last week that there had been significant progress made in drafting agreements to restart pipeline exports. "But it still needs to get over the line," he added. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/iraq-nears-deal-restart-pipeline-oil-exports-kurdistan-turkey-sources-say-2025-09-19/
2025-09-19 12:42
BRUSSELS, Sept 19 (Reuters) - The European Commission proposed on Friday its 19th package of sanctions against Russia over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Member states will now have to discuss the package before adopting it unanimously. Here are the details: Sign up here. ENERGY MEASURES * A ban on Russian liquefied natural gas from Jan. 1, 2027, bringing forward the date from Jan. 1, 2028 that was proposed to member states via other legal texts FINANCIAL MEASURES CHILDREN * Sanctions on individuals involved in the abduction and indoctrination of Ukrainian children https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/whats-eus-proposed-19th-package-russia-sanctions-2025-09-19/
2025-09-19 12:36
LAGOS, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Nigeria is considering appointing the state regulator to take control of the country's existing oil contracts, rather than the state oil company, according to a draft legislative amendment seen by Reuters. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT This could reshape how Africa’s top oil producer governs its petroleum sector, making the regulator both an umpire and a player, blurring the lines between regulation and participation and raising concern over potential conflicts of interest. Sign up here. It also raises corporate governance concerns because it removes the power of state company NNPC's board to approve its budget and formulate strategy. CONTEXT The law that would be amended is the 2021 Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which empowered NNPC to represent Nigeria's interests in a variety of commercial oil contracts. The amendment would transfer that role to the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC). A letter from the Attorney General to the minister in charge of gas, seen by Reuters, said the amendment was necessary because "some provisions of the PIA have created structural and legal channels through which substantial revenues of the Federation are being diverted away from the Federation account". KEY QUOTE "The observed decline in net oil revenue inflows is largely attributable to statutory leakages and opaque deductions under the current PIA architecture," said Lateef Fagbemi, Nigeria's attorney general and minister of justice. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/nigeria-considers-giving-oil-contract-control-regulator-2025-09-19/
2025-09-19 12:12
Sept 19 (Reuters) - U.S. Representatives Don Bacon and Ro Khanna will introduce bipartisan legislation that would exempt coffee products from any tariffs, spokespeople for the lawmakers told Reuters on Friday. Brazil used to supply a third of all the coffee used in the U.S., but shipments dried up since a 50% tariff was imposed on Brazilian imports at the end of July. Sign up here. "Families across America are feeling the cost of higher coffee prices, which are already up 21 percent, and tariffing a product we can't grow at a large, commercial scale, only makes it worse," Republican lawmaker Bacon said. Roasted coffee prices at grocery stores in the U.S. rose 20.9% in August from a year ago, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. "I look forward to working with Rep. Khanna to introduce this bipartisan bill and believe it can help spark the broader debate about Congress reclaiming its constitutional role in tariff policy," Bacon, one of the few Republican voices in Congress who has taken positions independent of President Donald Trump, added. Prices for arabica coffee, the mild variety mostly used by coffee chains such as Starbucks (SBUX.O) , opens new tab and Dunkin Donuts, have jumped around 50% at the Intercontinental Exchange in New York since the Trump administration imposed its tariff on Brazilian imports, including green coffee. "If you drink coffee every morning, how can you not be mad about that?” Khanna, who is a Democrat, told Reuters, referring to the price rise. The bill seeks to exempt coffee from any tariffs imposed after Jan. 19, 2025, including roasted and decaffeinated coffee, as well as coffee husks, skins, and coffee substitutes containing coffee in any proportion. A spokesperson for Khanna told Reuters the legislation would be introduced Friday. The Washington Post first reported the introduction of the bill. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-lawmakers-plan-introduce-bipartisan-bill-kill-coffee-tariffs-washington-post-2025-09-19/
2025-09-19 12:07
US Forest Service issues conditional notice for development Construction of Stibnite project expected to begin by October Reclamation bond finalization expected within weeks US Export-Import Bank reviews $1.8-billion loan Sept 19 (Reuters) - Perpetua Resources (PPTA.O) , opens new tab said on Friday it has received U.S. permission to begin construction of its antimony and gold mine in Idaho, poised after nearly a decade of review to supply a critical mineral whose exports China has blocked. The company plans a ceremony with investors and politicians at its Stibnite project, about 138 miles (222 km) north of Boise, after a conditional notice to proceed from the U.S. Forest Service, but actual constructin is to start by October. Sign up here. The green light for the mine, backed by billionaire investor John Paulson, comes after Beijing last year blocked exports to the United States of antimony, a metal used to make bullets, solar panels and other goods. There are no current U.S. sources of the metal. The project received its mining permit , opens new tabin January, provided several minor conditions were met. Friday's move is essentially an acknowledgement by President Donald Trump's administration, which has supported the mine, that those conditions were satisfied. "Completing federal permitting for Perpetua Resources’ Stibnite Gold Project is a major step towards unlocking America’s critical minerals resources," said Emily Domenech, executive director of the government's permitting council. Boise, Idaho-based Perpetua must finalize a reclamation bond for the mine, a routine step expected to wrap up within a few weeks. The mine will supply more than 35% of America's annual antimony needs once it opens by 2028 and produce 450,000 ounces of gold each year. The dual revenue stream is expected to keep the project financially afloat regardless of any steps by Beijing to sway markets. The site has estimated reserves of 148 million pounds of antimony and 6 million ounces of gold. Last April, Perpetua received a letter of interest from the U.S. Export-Import Bank, the government's export credit agency, for a project funding loan worth up to that is still under review. The project has faced opposition from Idaho's Nez Perce tribe, which is concerned the mine could affect the state's salmon population. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/perpetua-gets-us-approval-begin-construction-idaho-antimony-gold-mine-2025-09-19/
2025-09-19 11:53
JPMorgan $1 billion total return swap expires by year-end Country hopes to move to monthly publication of debt statistics Officals press for conservative oil price estimate for 2026 budget LONDON, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Angola will decide by November whether to roll over its $1 billion total return swap deal with JPMorgan, or potentially raise the money on international capital markets, a senior debt official told Reuters. JPMorgan and Angola agreed in December a $1 billion, one-year derivative contract known as a total return swap, backed by $1.9 billion in government dollar bonds, which will expire at the end of this year. Sign up here. "We have some options," Dorivaldo Teixeira, General Director of the Public Debt Management Unit at Angola's finance ministry, told Reuters on the sidelines of investor meetings in London. If market conditions were right, Angola could issue debt to raise the funds, repay partially, or extend the current arrangement. "It depends on the cost," he said. While he said the market conditions for smaller, riskier issuers were improving, with yields "going in the right direction", he noted that the JPMorgan facility cost was lower than the country's Eurobonds and "if I can extend it, probably I will use it." CONTAINING THE COSTS The yield on Angola's international bonds currently stands at roughly 10%, according to JPMorgan EMBI data. Still, he said Angola would push for a better deal than the current 9% it was paying on the arrangement, whether that was from the bank or from markets. The full terms of the total return swap have never been published. The deal grabbed headlines in April, when Angola had to pay $200 million to JPMorgan as additional security for its collateralised bond in a margin call after U.S. tariff turmoil pushed oil prices - and Angola's bonds - sharply lower. In November, the country also has to pay back just over $860 million it has outstanding on a dollar-denominated bond it sold in 2015. Finance officials are also working to increase transparency by publishing debt statistics more regularly, Teixeira said. The finance ministry has started issuing its debt bulletin quarterly, and it is aiming to publish monthly starting next year, while ensuring key information and statistics are available in English as well as Portuguese. "The perception of risk of Angola was heightened a little bit because we didn't communicate as much. People need more information about what's going on," Teixeira said in an interview late on Thursday, adding he hoped this would help lower Angola's borrowing costs. CAUTIOUS ON CRUDE Teixeira said finance officials are pressing for a more conservative oil price assumption in the 2026 budget after the government had to stress-test its 2025 spending due to a drop in prices below their $70 per barrel assumption. Brent crude is trading at $67, and Teixeira said the final budget deficit figures could be higher than expected due to the fall in revenue. "One of the lessons that we learned from this, from this process, is probably next year, we should take a little bit more conservative approach that will help us to execute the budget in the most seamless way." Teixeira declined to peg a specific price but said officials base their assumptions on top analyst forecasts. A Reuters poll showed most analysts expect prices to drift down next year, with Brent forecast at $62.98 in the second quarter of 2026. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/angola-decide-1-bln-jpmorgan-deal-by-november-says-finance-official-2025-09-19/
