2024-10-16 11:14

HANGA ROA, Easter Island, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Easter Island, the tiny remote speck of land in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, is stuck in an oceanic vortex of plastic. According to municipal data from Rapa Nui, the island's local name, it receives around 50 times more plastic and microplastic than the coasts of Chile. This is largely due to its location in the South Pacific Gyre, which brings in trash from Australia, South America and fishing vessels. "The microplastic we find on the coasts isn't ours," said Moiko Pakomio, a marine biologist for the local government, adding that globally most microplastics come from fishing vessels that throw their waste in the ocean. "That (plastic waste) decomposes as it travels along currents and degrades until it becomes microplastic." The microplastics have also contaminated the local fauna, Pakomio said, including sea urchins that both residents and other marine fauna eat, contaminating the entire food chain. "Microplastics have been growing exponentially and it's terrible," said Pedro Edmunds, the mayor of Rapa Nui. "It's affecting our lives, it's affecting our food, the blue fish that live in our ocean and we depend on for protein." This has led Edmunds and others on the island to lead a campaign against plastic pollution. Edmunds hopes an agreement will be reached in South Korea next month to help reduce the use of plastic polymers. Although the island is appealing to the world to cut down on plastic waste, Edmunds said they had discovered that most of the contamination is coming from their own country. "We found out that 58% of the plastic Rapa Nui gets comes from continental Chile," Edmunds said. "It's Chile that's mainly contaminating Chilean waters and Rapa Nui." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/easter-island-battles-global-vortex-plastic-waste-2024-10-16/

2024-10-16 11:08

Oct 16 (Reuters) - A fuel tanker overturned late on Tuesday in Nigeria's northern state of Jigawa after the driver lost control of the vehicle, spilling petrol which exploded and killed at least 147 people, police and state emergency services said on Wednesday. The accident is one of the worst in recent times in Africa's most populous nation, which is battling with widespread security threats and a cost of living crisis. Haruna Mairiga, head of Jigawa state emergency services, put the death toll from the accident at 147. Local police spokesperson Lawan Shiisu Adam said the tanker was travelling from the ancient city of Kano to Yobe State in the north, when the driver lost control near Majia town in Taura local government area, about 530 kilometers (330 miles) north of the capital Abuja, causing it to overturn and spill fuel. Adam said that villagers attempted to scoop petrol from the spillage, resulting in a fire that engulfed the area, reportedly leading to many deaths. Adam added that 50 others were wounded and have been taken to local hospitals, in Ringim and Hadejia towns where they were being treated. A mass burial was held for the dead on Wednesday, Mairiga said. Many roads in Nigeria are poorly maintained and riven with potholes, causing accidents that claim dozens of lives every year. Last month, at least 48 people were killed in north-central Nigeria when a fuel tanker exploded after colliding with another truck carrying travellers and cattle, trapping other vehicles as well in the blaze. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/least-94-die-fuel-tanker-explosion-nigeria-cnn-reports-2024-10-16/

2024-10-16 10:55

LONDON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - U.S. copper miner Freeport McMoRan will postpone its sales of refined copper from Indonesia until the second quarter of 2025 as a fire at its new smelter causes a further production delay, two sources with knowledge of the matter said. Long production delays at the new Manyar smelter, with an output capacity of 480,000 metric tons of copper cathode a year, are likely to narrow an expected 2025 surplus of the metal and support prices . Freeport said earlier on Tuesday it is investigating the cause of the fire at a sulphuric acid unit at Freeport's (FCX.N) , opens new tab Manyar site, located in East Java province, which was extinguished late on Monday. Its subsidiary running the plant, PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) is conducting damage assessments and root cause evaluations, a spokesperson told Reuters. "The impact of this event on our planned ramp-up to full production also will be assessed," the company said. The $3.7 billion Manyar copper smelter was completed in June and started output in September. However, production was delayed until November due to water and steam leakage during an initial test period, Reuters reported earlier this month. The sources also said Freeport has been in talks with the Indonesian government to extend its export licence for copper concentrates which expires at the end of 2024 into the first quarter of next year. A slow ramp-up at Manyar could mean lower consumption of copper concentrate feedstock and a potential release of output mined from its flagship Grasberg mine in Indonesia, the world's second biggest copper-gold mine, to an undersupplied market. Indonesia's government is trying to discourage export of copper ores and concentrates. It wants miners to smelt metal locally to add value and increase state revenues. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/freeport-delay-indonesian-copper-sales-second-quarter-2025-after-fire-sources-2024-10-16/

2024-10-16 10:53

ABUJA, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Nigeria's oil regulator has rejected Shell's (SHEL.L) , opens new tab proposed $1.3 billion sale of its onshore oilfields to Renaissance group because the buyer is not qualified to manage the assets, Lagos-based ThisDay newspaper reported on Wednesday. Shell, which owns the assets via Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), said it was providing the regulator with all the required information without directly confirming the newspaper report. The regulator and Renaissance did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Shell on Jan. 16 announced its exit from Nigeria's onshore and shallow water operations after agreeing to sell the business to a consortium of five, mostly local, companies, opting to focus future investments in the potentially more lucrative deep offshore fields. Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) declined to approve the sale on the grounds the Renaissance consortium could not show it could manage the assets. The companies that make up the group have been unable to operate at least 50% of all existing assets under their control, ThisDay reported, citing unnamed persons familiar with the process. According to the report, the NUPRC has communicated its decision to all the parties. "Shell and the government are in ongoing communication as part of the approval process for the sale of SPDC. SPDC will continue to provide the regulator with all information needed to complete the approval process," a Shell spokesperson told Reuters. Shell's exit from Nigeria's onshore operations is part of a broader retreat by the oil majors as they focus on newer, more profitable operations. Exxon Mobil, Italy's Eni and TotalEnergies have all struck deals to sell assets in the country in recent years. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/nigeria-rejects-shells-13-billion-oil-asset-sale-thisday-reports-2024-10-16/

2024-10-16 10:32

WINDHOEK, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Namibia's central bank cut its main interest rate for the second meeting in a row on Wednesday, saying inflation had fallen surprisingly quickly and that the economy needed more support. Its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) unanimously decided to cut the repo rate (NACBIR=ECI) , opens new tab by 25 basis points to 7.25%, the same size of cut as at August's meeting. "The MPC noted the growing momentum in the international monetary policy easing cycle, the retreat in domestic inflation over the medium term, along with the recent downside surprise in the September 2024 inflation print," Bank of Namibia Governor Johannes !Gawaxab said in a statement accompanying the decision. Annual inflation in the southern African country fell to 3.4% in September (NACPIY=ECI) , opens new tab , a steep drop from the 4.4% posted in August. The central bank on Wednesday revised down its average inflation forecast for this year to 4.3%, versus a 4.7% forecast given at its last meeting. It attributed the revision to a more favourable outlook for international oil prices and a stronger domestic exchange rate. The bank said private sector credit extension remained subdued, suggesting that further support to the domestic economy was warranted. "The domestic economy, while growing at a moderate pace, was operating below full capacity," !Gawaxab said. Growth is projected to slow to 3.1% in 2024, compared to 4.2% in 2023. On a $750 million Eurobond redemption due in late 2025, the central bank governor said Namibia had already set aside 82% of the $500 million it wants to retire at maturity. The government still hopes to refinance the remaining $250 million, !Gawaxab said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/namibia-central-bank-cuts-main-interest-rate-725-2024-10-16/

2024-10-16 10:22

MUMBAI, Oct 16 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee closed slightly stronger on Wednesday, supported by broad-based interbank dollar sales towards the end of the session after having spent the day locked in a narrow range just shy of its all-time low. The rupee closed at 83.9950 against the U.S. dollar, up from its close at 84.0375 in the previous session. The currency spent most of the session near the 84.04-84.05 levels, just shy of its all-time low of 84.0750 hit on Monday. Dollar demand from foreign banks, likely on behalf of custodial clients, blunted the positive effects of lower oil prices and gain in most of the rupee's Asian peers, traders said. But dollar sales picked up towards the end of the session and banks' hesitation to initiate longs on the dollar-rupee near these levels helped make room for a move lower, a trader at a state-run bank said. The benchmark Indian equity indexes, the BSE Sensex (.BSESN) , opens new tab and Nifty 50 (.NSEI) , opens new tab, ended the day lower and have declined over 3% over the month so far. Overseas investors have sold local stocks worth nearly $8 billion so far in October as global fund managers increased their allocation to China at India's expense. Pressured by the outflows and elevated oil prices, the rupee weakened past 84 for the first time ever last week. But it has avoided sharper losses, supported by routine interventions by the Reserve Bank of India. Asian currencies were up between 0.1% and 0.5% on the day, while the dollar index was a tad lower at 103.2. "We continue to see a non-negligible risk that markets will place some "Trump hedges" by buying dollars ahead of a closely-contested U.S. election," ING Bank said in a note. Meanwhile, India's merchandise trade deficit shrank to $20.78 billion in September from a 10-month high of $29.65 billion in the previous month. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-ends-tad-stronger-aided-by-broad-based-interbank-dollar-sales-2024-10-16/