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Railroads blast UP-Norfolk Southern merger plan
Railroads blast UP-Norfolk Southern merger plan
Houston, 13 May (Argus) — Union Pacific (UP) and Norfolk Southern's four Class I competitors urged US federal regulators to once again reject as incomplete the merger proposal to create the first US transcontinental railroad company. UP and Norfolk Southern in December filed their original merger application with US rail regulator the Surface Transportation Board (STB), starting the clock on a multi-year process. It will be the largest merger the STB has ever scrutinized, and the process will likely feature high-profile hearings and congressional scrutiny. The three-member STB in January ruled that the would-be partners' merger application was incomplete, sending it back to UP and Norfolk Southern to fill in key informational gaps. The railroads on 30 April refiled their proposal, which they say reinforces their argument the merger would drive growth, save shipping costs and bolster the US supply chain. UP said its updated analysis shows the merger will shift freight shipments from the roads to the rails, saving shippers an estimated $3.5bn/yr and removing about 2.1mn trucks from the road. However, all of the remaining Class I competitors heaped criticism on the merger application. According to BNSF Railway, UP's western Class I competitor, "the amended merger application makes things worse, not better." The refiled application "largely repackages" the first version while offering only "cosmetic changes to gloss over the serious and fundamental competition, pricing, and service concerns that were previously raised", BNSF said in an 8 May filing with the STB. In its updated analysis, UP said the combined railroad will hold a 39pc market share of US rail freight market, which the railroad says would put it roughly on par with BNSF by certain metrics. BNSF said that UP's actual market share would be considerably higher, a fact that it has downplayed in its application. "UP continues to lowball its projected market shares to the board but signals to Wall Street — the engine behind this proposed merger — that the market shares and pricing power will be even higher," BNSF said, urging the STB to reject the application again as incomplete. Canadian Class I railroads Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Canadian National both filed separate comments urging the STB to reject the application as incomplete, as did eastern US Class I railroad CSX. In response to the filings, UP on 12 May said its updated application "is comprehensive and complete, and provides all the information" that the STB needs, including market share data. The merger would create a single rail network stretching about 55,000 miles, handling about half of US freight traffic. UP and Norfolk Southern say that a coast-to-coast network will speed transit times by 24 to 48 hours and lead to greater efficiency. The two companies expect the transaction to be completed in the first half of 2027. The UP-Norfolk Southern merger will be the first test of STB rules enacted in 2001 requiring Class I railroads to demonstrate that major mergers enhance, rather than merely preserve, competitive shipping options. By Chris Baltimore Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
DHL signs 10‑year SAF offtake deal with Bahrain project
DHL signs 10‑year SAF offtake deal with Bahrain project
London, 13 May (Argus) — German logistics firm DHL Express said it has signed its first sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) offtake deal in the Middle East, securing supply from a Bahrain project by Dubai-based developer SAF One from 2028. DHL will take 25,000 t/yr of unblended SAF for 10 years, or 250,000t in total. It will act as an anchor offtaker, providing demand certainty as the project progresses toward construction and start-up from 2028. This commitment marked "an important step" toward bringing the facility on line, said SAF One co-founder and chief executive Deepak Munganahalli. Earlier this year SAF One secured $30mn investment and hired an engineering partner to start building a hydrotreating plant in 2026 at an unnamed Middle East location — now seemingly confirmed as Bahrain. DHL will allocate the SAF globally through a book-and-claim system, enabling its customers to reduce Scope 3 emissions even on routes not directly fuelled with SAF. DHL used 10pc SAF in 2025 from suppliers in Europe, the US, and Asia-Pacific, and has a target of using 30pc SAF by 2030. The firm has scaled SAF through a business-to-business model, where its customers willingly absorb SAF premiums in exchange for emissions reductions. Passenger airlines can struggle to pass higher fuel costs to travellers. By Aidan Lea Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
IEA sees big oil demand fall, but still 2026 deficit
IEA sees big oil demand fall, but still 2026 deficit
London, 13 May (Argus) — Global oil demand in 2026 will contract at a vastly quicker pace than previously forecast, but not by enough to close the supply shortfall, the IEA said today. In its latest Oil Market Report (OMR), the IEA said it sees demand at 104mn b/d in 2026, a 420,000 b/d contraction on the year. The IEA's pre-war forecast for the year was 640,000 b/d of demand growth, and its previous monthly forecast was for an 80,000 b/d contraction. Weakening economies and demand-saving measures are having an effect on consumption, it said, as governments and consumers alike respond to the price volatility recorded in the 10 weeks since the US and Israel began their war with Iran. "For now, the steepest losses are seen in the petrochemical sector where feedstock availability is becoming increasingly constrained," the IEA said. "Aviation activity is also running well below normal levels". Around half the demand downgrade from pre-war levels, or 700,000 b/d, is for LPG/ethane and naphtha. Jet fuel demand is cut by 210,000 b/d. The agency sees the biggest hit coming in the current quarter, when it forecasts demand to fall by 2.45mn b/d. Of this, 1.5mn b/d is in non-OECD countries, mostly in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. Net lost supply since February now stands at 12.8mn b/d, with 14mn b/d of shut-in Mideast Gulf production relieved only slightly by higher exports from the US, Kazakhstan, Russia and Venezuela. The IEA sees supply this year at 102.2mn b/d, on the assumption that the strait of Hormuz reopens to tanker traffic in June. The resulting deficit will see inventories falling throughout the year, the IEA said. Global stocks drew by 129mn bl in March and by 117mn bl in April, the latter a preliminary figure. Overall drawdown, including from industry stocks and from the IEA co-ordinated release in March , could reach 900mn bl by September. Rebuilding this will require around an extra 1mn b/d of supply for the next three years on top of underlying demand growth, the IEA said, again assuming a June resumption of shipping through Hormuz. The IEA has postponed publication of its Oil 2026 report, which was scheduled for June, until "a later date". The report was to give analysis and forecasts to 2031. By Ben Winkley Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Methanol projects dominate Australia H2 subsidy scheme
Methanol projects dominate Australia H2 subsidy scheme
Sydney, 13 May (Argus) — The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) has announced a shortlist of projects for the second round of its Hydrogen Headstart subsidy scheme, with methanol facilities making up four of the seven. The shortlisted projects must submit full applications by early September, Arena said on 13 May, to win part of the A$1bn ($723.7mn) in funding available, which was reduced by A$1bn in last night's federal budget . Arena's selections represent 2,180MW of capacity, compared with the 3,394MW in the first round's shortlist . Four of the projects plan to manufacture methanol, the largest being the Bell Bay Powerfuels project in Tasmania state, which is aiming for first output in 2029 . Perdaman's 750MW Project Helios will connect to the company's 2.3mn t/yr Project Ceres urea plant in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The firm started constructing its 30MW solar farm in March. Helios is expected to reduce Perdaman's carbon emissions by 43,800t of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e)/yr. Australian low-carbon fuels firm HAMR Energy's Portland Renewable Fuels Project was also on the list. The developer of the 220MW project received South Australia state government backing for a 140mn litres/yr sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) plant in March. Applications for the shortlist opened in October last year and follows consultations last year , after the first round of the scheme failed to award the full A$2bn initially offered, instead awarding the 900,000 t/yr Murchison Green Hydrogen project and the 4,700 t/yr Hunter Valley Hydrogen Hub with A$814mn and A$432mn, respectively, in 2025. Murchison has been shortlisted for its stage 1B, add a further 500MW of subsidised output to the initial stage meaning a total of 1.5GW capacity, while 3GW of electrolysis is ultimately planned for the project. The Headstart production credit pays the manufacturer per unit of production over a 10-year period of operations, to help bridge the gap between cost of making renewable hydrogen and market prices. By Tom Major and Susannah Cornford Hydrogen Headstart round 2 projects Applicant Project Title Electrolyser capacity (MW) State Hydrogen End Use Bell Bay Powerfuels Bell Bay Powerfuels 300 Tasmania Methanol European Energy Australia South East Queensland Power-to-X Project 150 Queensland Methanol HAMR Energy Portland Renewable Fuels Project 220 Victoria Methanol and SAF HIF Asia Pacific HIF Tasmania e-Fuel Facility 140 Tasmania Methanol Murchison Hydrogen Renewables Murchison Green Hydrogen Project Stage 1B 500 Western Australia Ammonia Perdaman Commercial Developments Perdaman Helios (Karratha): Decarbonising Fertilisers 750 Western Australia Urea Summit Hydro Gladstone Green Hydrogen Project 120 Queensland Alumina Source: Arena Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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