2024-06-25 11:43
MILAN, June 25 (Reuters) - The renewable unit of energy group Enel (ENEI.MI) New Tab, opens new tab has started up a solar plant with an installed capacity of around 87 megawatt (MW), making it the biggest in northern Italy, the company said on Tuesday. Local residents helped to pay for the solar project through a crowd-funding campaign launched in 2022 and will start to recoup their investment following the start of operations. Last year Enel's smaller rival Edison (EDNn.MI) New Tab, opens new tab inaugurated a new hydroelectric power station partly financed by the local community and its wider customer base. The latest project is located in the town of Trino, in Piedmont in the northwest, on a site that was home to a nuclear power plant until the country voted in 1987 to ban the production of atomic energy. It comprises 160,000 photo-voltaic panels. Until last year, Italy's energy transition had largely consisted of the installation of myriad rooftop solar panels, a small-scale strategy which has kept the country's power generation costs high and slowed its path towards decarbonisation. The Trino solar farm will produce approximately 130 gigawatt hour (GWh) per year, providing green energy to meet power needs of roughly 47,000 households, Enel said in a statement. The plant is also equipped with a 25 MW battery energy storage system with a storage capacity of 100 megawatt hour (MWh). An additional, larger storage system is scheduled for installation at the site in the near future. Italy's right-wing coalition last month approved rules aimed at curbing the installation of solar panels on agricultural land, triggering criticism that it could undermine Rome's decarbonisation goals. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/locals-help-enel-launch-northern-italys-largest-solar-plant-2024-06-25/
2024-06-25 11:41
June 25 (Reuters) - The surge in investment in private debt is "more money for old rope", BNP Paribas Wealth Management global chief investment officer Edmund Shing said on Tuesday. Shing said private assets were an essential for clients with large enough portfolios that could lock up their capital over a longer time frame, but were "not for everybody." "Everyone is look at selling these funds as if it were something new," he told the audience at a conference in Monaco. "It's more money for old rope," he said. "The danger here is you have no idea of the default cycle, of the credit rating. We do not know how well they can manage that. And I think yes, there could be some accidents along the way." Asset manager Blackstone (BX.N) New Tab, opens new tab told the Financial Times in a report published on Tuesday it plans to double the size of its European private credit fund in the next year after raising 1 billion euros ($1.07 billion) to invest in this pocket of the market. The private credit market, where investment funds lend private equity portfolio businesses and other companies money, has boomed in recent years and is estimated to be worth some $1.7 trillion. ($1 = 0.9328 euros) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/bnp-paribas-wealth-management-boss-says-private-debt-is-money-old-rope-2024-06-25/
2024-06-25 11:30
NAPERVILLE, Illinois, June 24 (Reuters) - Speculators continued selling Chicago-traded soybeans through mid-June as U.S. plantings are set for a substantial rise versus last year and U.S. export demand for the 2024 soy crop is nearly non-existent. Money managers in the week ended June 18 extended their net short in CBOT soybean futures and options to a seven-week high of 105,970 contracts, their most bearish ever for the week and close to 2017’s all-time net short for the month. That is according to data published by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Monday, postponed from the normal Friday release due to the Juneteenth holiday. Funds were net sellers of nearly 92,000 soybean contracts in the three weeks ended June 18, the most for any three-week period since December 2019 and particularly uncommon for June. New gross shorts were responsible for more than 80% of the net selling during that period, and open interest in soy futures and options rose 6%. CBOT November soybean futures were down 1.7% in the week ended June 18, and although they were virtually unchanged in the subsequent three sessions, they hit a new yearly low of $11.11-1/2 per bushel on Monday. CBOT December corn also made new yearly lows on Monday of $4.43 but had drifted slightly higher in the week ended June 18. Money managers trimmed their net short in CBOT corn futures and options to 191,462 contracts from 212,279 a week earlier on a mixture of new longs and short covering. Funds’ relatively large corn net short is also rare for June, second only to 2020 in size, and that likely expanded further through Monday with three-session losses exceeding 3%. CBOT September wheat marked a three-plus-month low of $5.64-1/4 per bushel on Monday following a 7.4% decline in the week ended June 18. Money managers expanded their net short that week to an eight-week high of 52,732 CBOT wheat futures and options contracts versus 45,116 a week earlier. Speculators maintain hugely bullish bets on CBOT soybean meal and hugely bearish ones on CBOT soybean oil. Their net short in CBOT oilshare, which measures soyoil’s share of value in the soy products, surpassed 184,000 futures and options contracts as of June 18, the biggest net short since May 2018. CROP CONDITIONS AND BEYOND Last week’s hot and dry weather hurt U.S. crops in the eastern Corn Belt while flooding caused issues in the west. The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday afternoon rated 69% of U.S. corn as good-to-excellent (GE) and soybeans at 67% GE, and losses were prominent in both the east and the northern Belt, consistent with Crop Watch findings. Those were both down 3 percentage points on the week, as expected for corn but one point larger for soybeans. However, crop ratings often decline during June. Corn conditions are down 6 percentage points from the season’s initial rating and soybeans are down 5 points. Identical declines were observed over the same period in 2022, but conditions deteriorated more sharply in both 2021 and 2023, especially for corn. Additionally, the current 69% GE for corn and 67% GE for soybeans are both the week’s best since 2020, which featured respective scores of 72% and 70%. U.S. crop weather looks more favorable this week versus last, but traders’ attention will turn to the U.S. stocks and acres report on Friday. Analysts see both U.S. corn and soybean plantings rising slightly from the March survey, but the June survey is known for its surprise potential. Karen Braun is a market analyst for Reuters. Views expressed above are her own. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/funds-notch-sharpest-three-week-soybean-selloff-since-2019-2024-06-25/
2024-06-25 11:28
HELSINKI, June 25 (Reuters) - Finland plans to offer preemptive bird flu vaccination as soon as next week to some workers with exposure to animals, health authorities said on Tuesday, making it the first country in the world to do so. The Nordic country has bought vaccines for 10,000 people, each consisting of two injections, as part of a joint EU procurement of up to 40 million doses for 15 nations from manufacturer CSL Seqirus (CSL.AX) New Tab, opens new tab. The Australian company in a statement to Reuters said Finland would be the first country to roll out the vaccine. "The vaccine will be offered to those aged 18 or over who are at increased risk of contracting avian influenza due to their work or other circumstances," the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) said in a statement. The H5N1 strain of bird flu has killed or caused the culling of hundreds of millions of poultry globally in recent years and has increasingly been spreading to mammals, including cows in the United States and, in some cases, also to humans. Finland has not detected the virus in humans, THL said. However, the country is eager to roll out vaccinations given transmission risks posed by its fur farms. "The conditions in Finland are very different in that we have fur farms where the animals can end up in contact with wildlife," Chief Physician Hanna Nohynek at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) told Reuters. Widespread outbreaks of bird flu among mink and foxes at Finland's mostly open-air fur farms led to the culling last year of some 485,000 animals to stop the virus from spreading among the animals as well as to humans. Vaccinations are likely to start as early as next week in at least some parts of Finland, a THL spokesperson told Reuters. Finland said it procured vaccines for people it deems to be at risk, such as workers at fur and poultry farms, lab technicians who handle bird flu samples and veterinarians who work as animal control officers in regions where fur farms are located. People working in sanctuaries caring for wild birds, in livestock farms or in the cleaning of premises, such as animal by-products processing plants, will also be offered vaccines, THL said. If human infection of avian influenza were to occur, close contacts of a suspected or confirmed case would also be offered the vaccine, it added. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/finland-start-bird-flu-vaccinations-humans-2024-06-25/
2024-06-25 11:21
BRUSSELS, June 25 (Reuters) - European Union leaders will call this week for a greater focus on manufacturing green technologies in Europe, as competition to produce electric cars and wind turbines heats up with China and the United States, a draft statement showed. EU countries' leaders meet in Brussels on Thursday for a two-day summit, where they plan to decide who should take the bloc's top jobs New Tab, opens new tab for the next five years, and give guidance on policy goals. A draft of that guidance, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, reflected a growing wish among European policymakers to support European industries to manufacture the technologies needed to meet climate goals. "We will create a more supportive environment for scaling up Europe's manufacturing capacity for net-zero technologies and products," the draft said, adding that Europe's green transition should focus on keeping industries competitive. Other green topics were less prominent in the draft, which did not specify whether leaders intend to strengthen EU climate policies in the next five years, or invest more in adapting to worsening climate change risks from floods and heatwaves. One of the next European Commission tasks is to propose a legally binding target for the EU to cut emissions by 2040. This was not mentioned in the draft. Two EU diplomats said some governments have sought to reduce the documents' focus on Europe's green agenda, which has faced opposition in recent months from right-wing and far-right politicians. Gains for those parties in this month's European Parliament election are set to make it harder for the EU to pass ambitious climate policies in the next five yeas, lawmakers and officials have said. Months of protests by farmers have added to EU policymakers' wariness about targeting the sector with new rules to encourage more environmentally-friendly practices. "The European Union will promote a competitive, sustainable and resilient agricultural sector that continues to ensure food security, and champion vibrant rural communities," the draft said, adding that the bloc would continue to protect nature. The document said EU countries will need to invest more in shifting sectors off fossil fuels and onto electricity, as well as in power grids and energy storage. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/eu-leaders-want-more-green-industry-europe-draft-shows-2024-06-25/
2024-06-25 11:10
Airline to introduce 'Environmental Cost Surcharge' Fares to rise between 1 euro and 72 euros Air France-KLM has made a similar move June 25 (Reuters) - Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) New Tab, opens new tab will add an environmental charge of up to 72 euros ($77) to its fares, the airline group said on Tuesday, joining at least one European rival in doing so as the industry battles to cover the cost of meeting new EU rules on reducing emissions. Airlines have warned for years that regulations requiring them to use more expensive sustainable jet fuel could drive up costs. Ticket prices have already surged in recent years in the post-COVID travel boom, raising fears that further increases could start deterring travellers from flying. Fares will go up between 1 euro and 72 euros, depending on the type of ticket, on all flights departing from European Union countries, Britain, Norway and Switzerland, the German airline group said. Some of the increases are effective from June 26 and others from 2025. It said the charge would "cover part of the steadily rising additional costs due to regulatory environmental requirements" such as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) made from bio-based materials - regarded as crucial to making flying less polluting. Lufthansa shares hit an intraday low after the news and were last down 0.9% at 1226 GMT. Aviation is deemed responsible for about 2% of the world's emissions but is considered one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise as fuel for flights cannot be easily replaced with other kinds of power. European regulators introduced rules that ask fuel suppliers to ensure 2% of fuel at EU airports is SAF by 2025, rising to 6% in 2030 and 70% in 2050. Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) New Tab, opens new tab is considering broadly similar measures to Lufthansa, a person familiar with the matter said. The airline group already imposed a SAF contribution charge in January 2022, it said, adding a surcharge of up to 12 euros for business fares and up to four euros for economy fares at the time. "We have a SAF contribution in place, applicable to all flights (not only on departure from Europe) to transparently reflect the additional cost of incorporating sustainable aviation fuel," an Air France-KLM spokesperson said in an emailed statement. COST WARNINGS British Airways owner IAG (ICAG.L) New Tab, opens new tab, EasyJet (EZJ.L) New Tab, opens new tab, Ryanair (RYA.I) New Tab, opens new tab and Wizz Air (WIZZ.L) New Tab, opens new tab were not immediately available to comment on whether they would introduce similar measures to Lufthansa. IAG shares were down 1.7% at 1145 GMT, while budget carrier Ryanair's extended gains after the news to trade up 1.7%. Singapore's government also introduced a levy on flight tickets earlier this year to help fund the additional cost of SAF. Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr warned last year the EU targets would be hard to achieve and hinted that higher costs would be passed on to customers. The price hike, which the airline called an "Environmental Cost Surcharge", will cover part of these costs for 2025 and will apply for all airlines in the Lufthansa group except for Eurowings tickets sold directly by the company, a spokesperson said. On short and medium-haul flights, the fares will go up by up to five euros in economy and seven for business class. On long-haul flights, the costs will go up between 18 and 36 euros for business fares and up to 72 euros for first class fares from 2025, Lufthansa confirmed to Reuters. A spokesperson said the move was not tied to Lufthansa's high labour costs after strikes this year, which led the airline to issue a profit warning ahead of first quarter results. He added the additional costs weren't expected to go up further for now. ($1 = 0.9321 euros) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/lufthansa-increases-ticket-prices-cover-environmental-requirements-2024-06-25/
