2024-12-21 13:32
Dec 21 (Reuters) - The Biden administration is mulling exempting Mexico from tariffs on imported solar equipment, a change that could benefit Maxeon Solar Technologies (MAXN.O) , opens new tab, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/biden-mulls-exempting-mexico-imported-solar-gear-tariffs-bloomberg-news-reports-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 11:45
BUDAPEST, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Hungary is in talks with Russia and Ukraine on keeping open gas shipments via Ukraine even though its Russian gas imports now come via the Turkstream pipeline, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Saturday, adding he did not want to give up that route. The pipeline, via Ukraine, is one of the last main Russian gas routes to Europe, but it is due to shut at the end of this year as Kyiv does not want to extend a five-year transit agreement which brings gas to Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria. "We are now trying the trick ... that what if the gas, by the time it enters the territory of Ukraine, would no longer be Russian but would be already in the ownership of the buyers," Orban told a briefing. "So the gas that enters Ukraine would no longer be Russian gas but it would be Hungarian gas." Orban said talks were ongoing and it was not clear whether the Russian partner and Ukraine would accept that, but Hungary would not give up the Ukraine transit route for gas. Hungary this year imported some 7.5 billion cubic metres of Russian gas via the Turkstream pipeline and additional amounts via Romania. It also has domestic production of around 1-1.5 billion cubic metres of gas, Orban said. Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico warned of a gas crisis on Friday as Ukraine continued to reject extending the transit of natural gas through its territory due to the war. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/hungary-talks-russian-gas-shipments-via-ukraine-pm-orban-says-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 11:39
PARIS, Dec 21 (Reuters) - France connected the Flamanville 3 nuclear reactor to its grid on Saturday morning, state-run operator EDF said, in the first addition to the country's nuclear power network in 25 years. The reactor, which began operating in September ahead of the grid connection, is going online 12 years later than originally planned and at a cost of around 13 billion euros - four times the original budget. "EDF teams have achieved the first connection of the Flamanville EPR to the national grid at 11:48am (1048 GMT). The reactor is now generating electricity," EDF said in a statement. The Flamanville 3 European Pressurised Reactor is France's largest at 1.6 gigawatts (GW) and one of the world's biggest, along with China's 1.75 GW Taishan reactor, which is based on a similar design, and Finland's Olkiluoto. It is the first to be connected to the grid since Civaux 2 in 1999 but is being brought into service at a time of sluggish consumption, with France exporting a record amount of electricity this year. EDF is planning to build another six new reactors to fulfil a 2022 pledge made by President Emmanuel Macron as part of the country's energy transition plans, although questions remain around the funding and timeline of the new projects. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/france-adds-first-nuclear-reactor-25-years-grid-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 05:51
CAIRO, Dec 21 (Reuters) - The Israeli military said it failed to intercept a missile from Yemen early on Saturday that fell in the Tel Aviv-Jaffa area, and the ambulance service said 14 people received mild injuries. A spokesperson for the Iran-aligned Houthis said they had hit a "military target" in the Jaffa area with a ballistic missile. Paramedics were treating 14 people with minor shrapnel injuries and some were taken to hospital, the ambulance service said in a statement. The Israeli police reported receiving reports of a fallen missile in a town in the Tel Aviv area. The Houthis have repeatedly fired drones and missiles towards Israel in what they describe as acts of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. On Thursday, Israel launched strikes against ports and energy infrastructure in Houthi-held parts of Yemen and threatened more attacks against the Yemeni group. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-military-says-it-failed-intercept-missile-yemen-after-sirens-sounded-2024-12-21/
2024-12-20 22:23
Dec 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved Eli Lilly's (LLY.N) , opens new tab weight-loss treatment, Zepbound, for obstructive sleep apnea, making it the first drug greenlighted to directly treat patients with the common sleeping disorder. The regulator approved the drug for moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea in adults with obesity, the company said. The approval opens up a wide market of patients for Lilly at a time when demand for Zepbound is already surging. It could also strengthen Lilly's case with commercial insurers and employers, who have previously hesitated to cover the drug due to its high cost. Shares of the Indianapolis-based drugmaker were up 1.14% in after-market trading following the announcement. Sleep apnea patients stop breathing briefly while sleeping, disturbing the sleep cycle and causing long-term complications such as heart conditions. The condition affects roughly one billion people globally. "Too often, obstructive sleep apnea is brushed off as 'just snoring' - but it's far more than that," said Julie Flygare, CEO of non-profit organization Project Sleep. Common treatments for the condition include CPAP machines, which involve wearing a mask over the face while sleeping, surgery, as well as losing weight. Zepbound and Lilly's widely used diabetes drug, Mounjaro, both chemically called tirzepatide, belong to a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists. Originally developed for type 2 diabetes, they also reduce food cravings and cause the stomach to empty more slowly. U.S.-based Lilly and Danish rival Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) , opens new tab are testing their blockbuster obesity drugs for a range of conditions as they race to show that they have other health benefits. Regulators can expand approval for medicines if new data shows them to be effective in other therapeutic areas. The FDA's approval is based on data from two trials involving 469 participants, in which Zepbound helped ease breathing difficulties in patients with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea. The drugmaker published the full data in June, showing the drug helped resolve the disorder in up to 52% of patients in these trials. Trial data also showed that Zepbound lowered the so-called biomarkers of sleep apnea, including low blood oxygen and blood pressure, which can indicate heart disease. Government-backed Medicare plans for adults aged 65 and older and those with disabilities are barred from covering weight-loss treatments, though the Biden administration has proposed to expand the coverage of anti-obesity drugs. If President-elect Donald Trump's incoming administration backs the move, the program would be effective from 2026. Medicare only began covering Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO) , opens new tab Wegovy after it gained approval for reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes in March. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/lillys-weight-loss-drug-zepbound-wins-us-fda-approval-sleep-apnea-2024-12-20/
2024-12-20 21:45
NEW YORK, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Swedish electric-vehicle battery maker Northvolt said on Friday it expects to line up additional bankruptcy financing by late January after engaging with over 100 lenders and potential investors. Northvolt entered bankruptcy on Nov. 21 with a $100-million bankruptcy loan from Swedish truck maker Scania, a shareholder and its biggest customer. But that loan was not intended to carry Northvolt through its entire bankruptcy restructuring, and the company has continued to evaluate proposals for additional financing from strategic and financial investors. Northvolt attorney Jack Luze said at a Friday court hearing in Houston that the company had reached out to over 100 potential lenders and investors in search of new financing that would allow Northvolt to complete its restructuring. Luze said the company intends to present a longer-term financing proposal to U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Alfredo Perez at a court hearing on Jan. 28. Perez granted full approval of Northvolt's previous bankruptcy loan on Friday, after previously allowing Northvolt to access the first $51 million of the loan. "We are pleased with the results of this hearing, at which we gained final approval of our motions to access new funding, a positive step forward in our restructuring," a Northvolt spokesperson said. Northvolt raised more than $10 billion in an effort to mass-produce EV batteries and compete with experienced and deep-pocketed Chinese battery makers. The company, which employs around 6,600 staff across seven countries, said it expects to continue normal business operations while it attempts to restructure its debts in bankruptcy. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/battery-maker-northvolt-makes-progress-toward-longer-term-bankruptcy-financing-2024-12-20/
