2024-10-05 03:01

Oct 4 (Reuters) - Leslie has become a hurricane in the Atlantic, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Friday. The hurricane is packing maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kmh), the Miami-based forecaster said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/leslie-becomes-hurricane-nhc-says-2024-10-05/

2024-10-05 00:28

Clean hydrogen backers cite global rush to decarbonize Holdups include lack of customers signing up to buy Gray hydrogen remains much cheaper alternative BOGOTA/MONTEVIDEO/RIO DE JANEIRO Oct 4, (Reuters) - Latin America's wealth of hydroelectricity and other renewable energy resources could make the region a major producer of clean hydrogen as the world seeks alternatives to fossil fuels to fight the climate crisis, but some big hurdles lie in the way. Government leaders expect a major boon for the region from clean hydrogen, also known as green hydrogen, produced using electricity from renewable sources that do not emit carbon. For example Colombia's government, led by leftist President Gustavo Petro, has made weaning the nation off oil and coal in favor of renewable energy a major policy goal. And billions of dollars in funding are on offer from multilateral lenders. Yet industry groups and analysts said still more investment is needed. Other major hurdles they cited included a lack of customers as local businesses shy away from signing deals that producers need to secure financing. This has exacerbated a dearth of local production. Advocates promote clean hydrogen as fuel for everything from trucks to steel blast furnaces and as input for green fertilizers. Yet critics say its production still requires excessive energy inputs. Latin American countries are poised to benefit as European and Asian countries need to bite the bullet and start signing contracts for "substantial quantities" of hydrogen, Monica Gasca, executive director of the Colombian Hydrogen Association, told Reuters. Yet she and other industry experts said production will probably not ramp up much without deals in place. "We are very much in a chicken and egg scenario when it comes to green hydrogen," said Fernando Schaich, head of green hydrogen at Uruguay-based energy service company SEG Ingenieria. Latin American industries themselves could be important hydrogen clients, Schaich said. "All projects will really start when the shipping, airline and heavy industries sign deals and make commitments." Pricing the fuel economically enough to attract customers depends on cheap, plentiful and reliable supplies of renewable energy. But in Colombia, dozens of onshore wind projects planned for the La Guajira peninsula have been canceled or long-delayed because Indigenous groups have not approved construction. "If Colombia doesn't really make an effort to facilitate the dialogues between the communities and the developers, mainly in La Guajira, then Colombia will be at least 33% less competitive than the rest of Latin America," said Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) lead energy specialist, Christiaan Gischler. Clean hydrogen is currently much more expensive - north of $10 per kilogram in some places - than more contaminating hydrogen, said Luisa Palacios, a senior research scholar at Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy. Gray hydrogen generated from fossil fuels currently costs as little as $1 to $3 per kilogram, Palacios added. But Gischler said re-purposing existing assets such as pipelines or building shared infrastructure could push clean hydrogen costs in Latin America down to $1.50 to $2.50 per kilogram. BUYERS AND REGULATORS A World Economic Forum report published in August recorded some $6.1 billion as earmarked for renewable investments - including clean hydrogen - across the region by multilateral lenders and funds, as well as foreign and regional governments, in addition to a feasibility study for a $4 billion clean hydrogen plant in Uruguay. That is a tiny fraction of the $100 billion to $300 billion investment the IDB's Maria Florencia Attademo-Hirt told a roundtable discussion that the industry would need in the region by 2030. There are about 65 clean hydrogen projects in Latin America, mostly in the early development stages, according to the Wilson Center think tank that hosted the roundtable. As of the end of 2023 Colombia had some 28 projects, according to Gasca, including an industrial-scale project at state-run energy company Ecopetrol's refinery in the city of Cartagena, set to come online in 2026. Brazil's Petrobras is also eyeing clean hydrogen to replace gray hydrogen in its own operations, according to the company's energy transition chief, Mauricio Tolmasquim. State-controlled Petrobras plans to build two green hydrogen plants, and is holding talks with potential customers, Tolmasquim has said, adding it is still establishing prices. Chile has identified 12 regulations relevant to green hydrogen development that must be updated, said Marcos Kulka, chief executive of H2 Chile, the South American country's eponymous hydrogen association. Five other rules must be created for development to advance. Like Colombia's La Guajira, Chile's Strait of Magellan could become a major clean hydrogen production hub thanks to strong winds, Gischler said. Producers have to be bolder in finding customers, said Diego Arboleda, chief executive of Colombian developer Hevolucion. "The client is not going to come through the door and say, 'who wants to sell me 100 tonnes of hydrogen right now?'" said Arboleda. Hevolucion's plant, located near Colombia's second-city Medellin, will start producing one tonne of clean hydrogen daily in November, and the company plans a pilot project to export green ammonia - produced by combining clean hydrogen with nitrogen - to the Port of Rotterdam for use as energy storage. Colombia's government should provide incentives domestically, Arboleda said, including rules about vehicles mixing diesel with hydrogen to reduce emissions. Clara Bowman, chief operating officer of HIF Global, whose Haru Oni plant in southern Chile produces clean hydrogen to make methanol for use in e-fuels, said mandates on blending clean hydrogen-based fuels with existing gasoline would help. Potential customers "need the regulatory support to make sure that they are not going to be uncompetitive in their industry as a result of making those sorts of decisions," Bowman said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/latin-america-gears-up-clean-hydrogen-boom-road-is-not-smooth-2024-10-04/

2024-10-04 23:23

Oct 4 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs said on Friday that it expects its Brent price forecast to peak $10-$20 per barrel in 2025 due to potential disruptions in Iranian production. Israel has sworn to strike Iran for launching a barrage of missiles at Israel on Tuesday after Israel assassinated the leader of Iran-backed Hezbollah a week ago. The events have increased fears of the potential for a broader war in the Middle East, helping oil prices to post their biggest weekly gains in over a year this week. "Assuming a two million barrels per day six-month disruption to Iran supply, we estimate that Brent could temporarily rise to a peak of $90 if OPEC rapidly offsets the shortfall, and a 2025 peak in the mid $90s without an OPEC offset," analysts at Goldman Sachs said in a note. "Assuming a one million barrels per day persistent disruption to Iran supply, reflecting for instance a tightening in sanctions enforcement, we estimate that Brent could reach a peak in the mid $80s if OPEC gradually offsets the shortfall," the bank said. However, Goldman continues to expect Brent to trade in the $70-85 range, and forecast an average price of $77 per barrel for the fourth quarter of 2024 and $76 per barrel for 2025 in case of no major supply disruption. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/goldman-eyes-brent-outlook-rise-due-iranian-supply-risks-2024-10-04/

2024-10-04 22:40

MADRID, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Spanish lobby group Foro Nuclear has filed a legal challenge with the country's top court against a 30% increase of the nuclear waste levy, while the main operators of the plants are moving to join the fight. The lobby group, whose members include the energy companies operating Spain's reactors and firms active in the industry, filed the legal action to the Supreme Court in late September, it told Reuters on Friday, declining to further comment. Energy giants Iberdrola (IBE.MC) , opens new tab and Endesa (ELE.MC) , opens new tab, the main operators of the country's nuclear fleet, are moving to file their own appeals, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. In June, the government raised the levy to 10.36 euros ($11.36) per megawatt hour from 7.98 euros due to rising storage and disposal costs. That means a cost of around 130 million euros more every year for the Spanish nuclear fleet as a whole, in addition to the 450 million it already pays, according to Foro Nuclear. The lobby group has also filed administrative appeals against the government's nuclear waste plans. Madrid's plan to shut the country's reactors, which generate about a fifth of its electricity, by 2035 has faced opposition from industry and business lobbies. The government estimates that dismantling the plants and managing radioactive waste will cost about 20.2 billion euros, to be paid for by a fund supported by the plants' operators. Naturgy (NTGY.MC) , opens new tab and EDP (EDP.LS) , opens new tab have minor stakes in some plants. Iberdrola, Endesa and the Energy Ministry declined to comment. ($1 = 0.9117 euros) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/spains-nuclear-waste-levy-hike-faces-legal-challenges-2024-10-04/

2024-10-04 22:20

Oct 4 (Reuters) - GSK (GSK.L) , opens new tab, Sanofi (SASY.PA) , opens new tab and CSL Ltd (CSL.AX) , opens new tab have secured $72 million from the U.S. government to ramp up production of bird flu vaccines, a health official said on Friday during a press briefing. The move comes as a multi-state outbreak among livestock and poultry has caused human illnesses and infected more than 254 herds in 14 states since March, according to government data. The companies will use the funds to fill vials and pre-filled syringes so that doses can be ready to distribute if needed, said David Boucher, director of Infectious Disease Preparedness and Response for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The latest award includes $37.9 million for CSL, $23.4 million for Sanofi and $10.5 million for GSK. It would more than double the country's supply of shots targeting bird flu, raising the country's total supply of ready-to-use doses to 10 million within the first quarter of 2025. GSK, Sanofi and CSL will also make additional bulk vaccine ingredients matched to circulating strains of bird flu, Boucher said. Australia's CSL recently secured a contract worth $121.4 million to increase the U.S. government's stockpile for bird flu vaccines to 40 million doses. CSL and GSK did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Sanofi redirected Reuters to the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, a part of HHS that issued the reward. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/sanofi-gsk-csl-tapped-expand-us-bird-flu-vaccine-supply-bloomberg-news-reports-2024-10-04/

2024-10-04 21:00

Drought affects grain exports and essential supplies in Manaus Sixty-two municipalities in Amazonas state under emergency, over half a million affected Hydropower plants sapped, daylight saving time may return to conserve electricity MANAUS, Brazil, Oct 4 (Reuters) - The river port in the Amazon rainforest's largest city of Manaus on Friday hit its lowest level since 1902, as a drought drains waterways and snarls transport of grain exports and essential supplies that are the region's lifeline. Below-average rainfall - even through the rainy season - has plagued the Amazon and much of South America since last year, also feeding the worst wildfires in more than a decade in Brazil and Bolivia. Researchers say climate change is the main culprit. Scientists predict the Amazon region may not fully recover moisture levels until 2026. Last year, the drought became a humanitarian crisis, as people reliant on rivers were stranded without food, water or medicine. This year authorities are already on alert. In hard-hit Amazonas state, at least 62 municipalities are under states of emergency with more than half a million people affected, according to the state's civil defense corps. "This is now the most severe drought in over 120 years of measurement at the Port of Manaus," said Valmir Mendonca, the port's head of operations, who said the river level is likely to keep falling for another week or two. With the region never fully recovering due to weaker-than-usual seasonal rains, many of the impacts of the drought last year look set to repeat or reach new extremes. The Port of Manaus measured the Rio Negro river at 12.66 meters on Friday, according to its website, surpassing the previous all-time low recorded last year and still falling rapidly. The Rio Negro is a major tributary of the Amazon River, the world's largest river by volume. The port sits near the "meeting of the waters" where the black water of the Negro meets the sandy-colored Solimoes, which also hit a record low this week. Grain shipments have been halted on the Madeira River, another tributary of the Amazon, because of low water levels, a port association said last month. Researchers are once again finding the carcasses of Amazon freshwater river dolphins, which they blame on thinning waters driving the threatened species into closer contact with humans. National disaster monitoring agency Cemaden has already called the drought Brazil's worst such event since at least the 1950s. The drought has also sapped hydropower plants, Brazil's main source of electricity. Energy authorities have approved bringing back daylight saving time to conserve electricity, although the measure still requires presidential approval. The extreme weather and dryness is affecting much of South America, with the Paraguay River also at an all-time low. That river starts in Brazil and flows through Paraguay and Argentina to the Atlantic. The same extreme heat and dryness is helping drive surging fires in the Amazon and neighboring Pantanal, the world's largest wetlands. Bolivia is also on track to break a record for most fires ever recorded, according to data from Brazil's space research agency. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/river-level-amazon-rainforest-port-hits-122-year-low-amid-drought-2024-10-04/