The US will impose a 35pc tariff on all imports from Canada effective on 1 August, President Donald Trump said in a 10 July letter to Canadian prime minister Mark Carney. The letter, which Trump posted on social media, noted that Canada previously planned retaliatory tariffs in response to the US' first tariff threats in the spring. He repeated his earliest justification for the tariffs — the illegal smuggling of fentanyl into the US from Canada — and said he would consider "an adjustment" to the tariffs if Canada worked with him to stop that flow.
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Japan’s energy demand falls on economic slowdown
Japan’s energy demand falls on economic slowdown
Osaka, 12 December (Argus) — Japan's energy consumption in the April 2024-March 2025 fiscal year fell again from a year earlier, pressured by slower industry activity. The country's 2024-25 final energy use totalled 292mn kiloliters, or 1.84bn bl of oil equivalent (boe), down by 1.7pc from a year earlier, according to preliminary data released on 12 December by the trade and industry ministry Meti. This marks the third consecutive annual decline. Coal use in final energy consumption fell by 3.7pc from a year earlier to 172mn boe in 2024-25, while oil demand declined by 3.7pc to 841mn boe. This came as energy consumption in the manufacturing and transportation sectors declined by 3.2pc to 766mn boe, and by 1.5pc to 445mn boe respectively. But demand for natural gas and city gas rose by 1.5pc from a year earlier to 167mn boe. Power demand also edged up by 1pc to 517mn boe. Coal-fired power generation edged up by 0.9pc to 283.4TWh during the period, while oil- and gas-fired power dropped by 2.7pc to 71TWh and by 2.4pc to 315.7TWh. Zero-emission power supplies, including renewables and nuclear power, rose by 3.9pc to 322.1TWh. Japan's energy-derived CO2 emissions fell by 1.4pc from a year earlier to 908mn t in 2024-25, supported by the increased use of renewable and nuclear power supplies. The 2024-25 emissions represented a 26pc fall compared with the country's 2013-14 baseline, or the lowest level since 1990-91. The lower energy consumption, as well as increased use of domestic renewable and nuclear energy, helped lift Japan's energy self-sufficiency rate to 16.4pc in 2024-25, up by 1.1 percentage points from a year earlier, based on International Energy Agency methodology. By Motoko Hasegawa Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia offers support to Rio Tinto’s Tomago Al plant
Australia offers support to Rio Tinto’s Tomago Al plant
Sydney, 12 December (Argus) — The Australian government has offered support to UK-Australian producer Rio Tinto to operate its 600,000 t/yr Tomago aluminium smelter beyond 2028 through a long-term power purchase agreement. Rio Tinto subsidiary Tomago Aluminium will work with Australia's federal and New South Wales (NSW) governments over coming months on an energy solution to support the 600,000 t/yr smelter from 2028, Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese said today. The deal will include a fixed-price power purchase agreement and a commitment from Tomago Aluminium to invest A$1bn ($670mn) into the plant over 10 years, he added. A long-term power purchasing agreement is in the interest of continued long-term investment into the industrial future of Tomago, Australia's minister of industry and innovation Tim Ayres said at a press conference. But Ayres declined to comment further on the specifics of the deal. Rio Tinto in October warned that it may need to close Tomago at the end of 2028 when its current electricity contract ends because of unsustainable energy costs. It had been looking for a new energy solution since 2022, but was not able to find one, it said at the time. The company began talks with NSW state and federal officials over energy cost support for Tomago in June. It has run the smelter normally over 2025. It produced 426,000t of aluminium on a 100pc basis at Tomago in January-September, down by 2.2pc on the year. Australia's support for Tomago comes one day after Tim Ayres defended the government's industrial policy record. Industrial policy is "a rational, pragmatic response to the acute challenges of this moment," he said at a speech to the Sydney Institute on 11 December. The government's support packages for the Whyalla steelworks , global producer Glencore's Queensland copper operations , and global producer Nyrstar's lead and zinc smelters were informed by its obligation to preserve and strengthen economic conditions for Australian workers, he added. The government may also offer support to another Rio Tinto aluminium smelter. Tasmanian state officials have called on the federal government to back the company's 190,000 t/yr Bell Bay aluminium smelter through low-carbon production subsidies in November. By Avinash Govind Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
TotalEnergies ends Papua LNG rebid phase: Correction
TotalEnergies ends Papua LNG rebid phase: Correction
Corrects headline and 'FID' to 'development forum' in last paragraph Sydney, 12 December (Argus) — New engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract offers have been received for the proposed 5.6mn t/yr Papua LNG project in Papua New Guinea (PNG), operator TotalEnergies said, following extensive design revisions for the delayed development. The firm is concluding the rebid phase after receiving new offers at reasonable costs, managing director of TotalEnergies EP PNG Arnaud Berthet told the PNG Resources and Energy Investment Conference in Sydney on 10 December. TotalEnergies relaunched EPC tendering late last year after previously estimated costs were considered too high for the project to proceed. The company expanded the contractor pool to include Chinese firms and reduced the gas pipeline diameter to 30 inches from 40 inches. This change increased the number of vessels able to perform pipelay, Berthet said, increasing competition, while it also routed the condensate pipeline west to a new floating storage and offloading vessel, reducing pipeline length. A development forum is planned for January-March next year, a legal requirement ahead of a final investment decision, which JV partner Australian independent Santos has previously signalled is likely in early 2026 . LNG sales and purchase agreements are under negotiation, and seven export credit agencies along with more than 30 commercial banks are interested in financing the project, Berthet said. By Tom Major Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia’s Beetaloo reaches FID on shale gas pilot
Australia’s Beetaloo reaches FID on shale gas pilot
Sydney, 12 December (Argus) — Australian shale gas developer Beetaloo Energy has made a final investment decision to build its 25 TJ/d (668,000 m³/d) Carpentaria pilot project in the Beetaloo subbasin in Australia's Northern Territory (NT), ahead of first gas targeted for mid-2026. Civil construction and upgrade works on the Carpentaria plant have already started, chief executive Alex Underwood said on 11 December, which involves the tie-in of up to 10 wells located in exploration permit 187. The decision comes after the firm this week received NT government approval to sell appraisal gas from Carpentaria. This is the second pilot project to reach FID in the untapped shale gas basin after Tamboran Resources' 40 TJ/d Shenandoah South pilot project, also targeting first appraisal gas in mid-2026. The NT government has agreed to purchase the entirety of gas from both projects via an ex-field take-or-pay basis, to supply government-owned Power and Water Corporation. If the basin's reserves prove economically viable Tamboran is eyeing LNG exports in the longer-term, potentially via Australian independent Santos' Darwin LNG project . By Tom Major Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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