AMLO downplays US sensitivity to Cuba aid
Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador shrugged off potential US opposition to Mexican fuel, food and medical aid to Cuba.
"We do have a very good relationship with the US government," AMLO, as the president is widely known, said today as a Mexican products tanker berthed in Havana port.
"We attempt to keep those good relations, a good neighbor with cooperation for development. But in the case of Cuba we do not agree with the blockade," he said, referring to the decades-old US embargo on the island.
The president said one more tanker will depart today with oxygen for Cuba's hospitals and another one tomorrow with food, but he did not mention the possibility of more fuel shipments.
The medium-range Jose Maria Morelos II tanker, which is owned by Mexico's state-owned Pemex, loaded at the Mexican port of Coatzacoalcos on 23 July. It was not immediately clear what type of fuel the vessel was carrying, but Mexico has a surplus of fuel oil, a product that Cuba uses for power generation.
AMLO said the fuel was sent to restore power supply to Cuban hospitals, in response to a letter he received from Cuba's president Miguel Diaz-Canel. AMLO said Mexico is acting as an "independent, free and sovereign" country. "If we were sending guns, well maybe we could see a conflict [with the US], and even then every country is independent, but … food, medicine? Why the blockade?"
The US embargo on Cuba has ample exceptions, including for food, medicine and agricultural products. US administration officials have not commented on Mexico's fuel supply to Cuba. Russia also sent aid to Cuba over the weekend. The former Soviet Union was Havana's main patron during the Cold War.
For two decades, Cuba has depended on its close ally Venezuela for almost all of its oil needs, but the Opec country's deteriorated national oil industry has lost production and refining capacity to sustain supplies at home or abroad. The fuel shortage in Cuba has exacerbated electricity blackouts, one of the many grievances that sparked rare protests on 11 July. The civil unrest was harshly quelled by special forces which drew US sanctions in response.
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Singapore offers alternative marine fuel training hub
Singapore offers alternative marine fuel training hub
Singapore, 16 April (Argus) — Singapore plans to offer maritime energy training for seafarers to handle vessels with sustainable marine fuels as the industry advances towards its decarbonisation goals. "With hundreds of crew change conducted daily here, Singapore's Maritime Energy Training Facility (METF) is well placed to support the training of international seafarers. Shipowners and operators can expect time and training cost savings by tapping METF's training facilities," the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said. A gap in workforce knowledge remains a barrier in the maritime sector's transition to future fuels. This is despite an expected increase in supplies and consumption of alternative marine fuels, accelerated by the International Maritime Organisation's target of net zero greenhouses gas emissions by 2050 . The maritime sector has recognised the need for workforce upskilling and value chain integration . Safety in handling, bunkering and managing alternative fuels like methanol and ammonia is one of the highlights of the METF training, with workers to be trained in a new dual-fuel engine simulator. The METF curriculum also covers methanol firefighting for shipboard and terminal fires conducted by the Singapore Maritime Academy, along with safety protocols used during the first ship-to-container ship bunkering of bio-methanol on 27 July last year. "Around 10,000 seafarers and other maritime personnel are expected to be trained at METF from now to the 2030s, as the facilities are progressively developed by 2026," the MPA announced, adding that the new curriculum will roll out gradually from this year. By Cassia Teo Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Jera targets 20GW renewable power capacity by 2035-36
Jera targets 20GW renewable power capacity by 2035-36
Tokyo, 16 April (Argus) — Japan's largest power producer by capacity Jera has renewed its renewable power output target to 20GW by the 2035-36 fiscal year ending 31 March, in line with the acceleration of its offshore wind power presence in Europe. Jera originally planned to increase its renewable power portfolio to 5GW by 2025-26 in its business plan in 2019. But the acquisition of Belgian offshore wind firm Parkwind accelerated the plan and renewable power output will be 3.4GW this year, Jera said. It last month set up a 100pc subsidiary Jera Nex in UK to achieve the new target. Jera last month won an auction to develop a 1.5GW offshore wind farm in Norway's North Sea Sorlige Nordsjo II through Ventyr, a joint venture between Parkwind and Netherlands-based Ingka Investments. The new firm is specialising in global renewable energy and will cover new projects in Norway. By Reina Maeda Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
La deuda de Pemex sobresale en el panorama electoral
La deuda de Pemex sobresale en el panorama electoral
Mexico City, 15 April (Argus) — La campaña presidencial de México termina en menos de dos meses, pero aunque ambas candidatas proponen una revolución verde en el sector de la energía, ninguna de ellas ha propuesto un plan viable para evitar la implosión financiera de la empresa estatal Pemex. Claudia Sheinbaum, candidata de continuidad para la política energética nacionalista del Presidente Andrés Manuel López Obrador, anunció el mes pasado su estrategia energética, comprometiéndose a aumentar la producción de petróleo y gas de Pemex, aumentar el rendimiento de las refinerías y la producción petroquímica, desarrollar una industria nacional de litio y buscar un nuevo enfoque en la generación de energía renovable. La antigua jefa de gobierno de la Ciudad de México no ha proporcionado detalles sobre ninguna de estas políticas, pero es difícil conciliar su compromiso con una ampliación de las energías renovables con un límite en la inversión del sector privado sin depender en gran medida del aumento de la financiación de la estatal de electricidad CFE. La política de Sheinbaum en materia de energías renovables es la única desviación de la agenda energética de López Obrador, aunque las agencias de calificación, los inversores y los analistas coinciden en que es probable que Pemex incurra en impago sin una amplia reforma estructural. Pemex tenía una deuda total de $106,100 millones a finales de 2023 y se enfrenta a $10,000 millones en vencimientos de deuda este año. El impulso del gobierno para aumentar el rendimiento de las refinerías ha generado pérdidas de miles de millones de dólares para Pemex. Solo en 2023, la división de refinación de Pemex reportó una pérdida de $4,400 millones, una mejora con respecto a una pérdida de $11,000 millones el año anterior. De 2019 a 2023, la división de refinación de la empresa registró más de $46,000 millones en pérdidas. López Obrador puso el rescate de Pemex y sus refinerías en el centro de su administración. Pero a pesar de no detener la espiral de deuda de la empresa, la disminución de la producción de crudo, el empeoramiento del récord de seguridad y el aumento de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero, sus políticas han tenido un coste que Sheinbaum no ha querido refutar públicamente. En su lugar, se compromete a lanzar el proyecto de la refinería Olmeca de 340,000 b/d de la empresa, que ya tiene dos años de retraso y ha costado al menos el doble del presupuesto original de $8,000 millones, dinero que las agencias de calificación afirman que debería haberse dirigido al negocio principal de Pemex en la exploración y producción. El apoyo gubernamental a Pemex, por un total de más de $52,000 millones entre 2019 y 2023, ha sido incapaz de mover la aguja en sus métricas financieras u operativas, y ahora amenaza la calificación crediticia soberana de México. Sheinbaum ha evitado abordar públicamente la carga de la enorme deuda de Pemex, proponiendo únicamente "niveles de deuda aceptables en el sector de la energía". Pero dada la importancia de Pemex para el proyecto político del partido Morena, además los cientos de miles de puestos de trabajo que dependen de Pemex, no se puede permitir que la empresa incumpla. Por otro lado, la candidata de oposición Xóchitl Gálvez pide poner fin al "caos financiero" en Pemex, diversificar su negocio hacia iniciativas de bajas emisiones de carbono, políticas rigurosas de emisiones, el cierre de sus refinerías más contaminantes, un nuevo enfoque en renovables y una reapertura de la industria energética a la inversión del sector privado. Sin embargo, a pesar de su perspectiva más favorable para la inversión privada, Gálvez aún no ha ofrecido una solución detallada para la situación financiera de Pemex. Sus planes para Pemex pueden ser demasiado radicales para los votantes, especialmente dentro del importante sindicato de trabajadores del petróleo, que repudió rápidamente sus llamados el mes pasado para cerrar dos refinerías. Incluso si ganara, la oposición que representa podría tener dificultades para acordar un camino a seguir para Pemex. Si la próxima administración vuelve a abrir la puerta a la inversión del sector privado, el nuevo gobierno se enfrentará a un esfuerzo lento para reconstruir los reguladores de la energía que han sufrido de baja inversión en los últimos seis años. Pero será el tamaño de la posible victoria de Sheinbaum lo que determinará el futuro del sector de la energía mexicano. Una mayoría convincente podría permitirle aprobar las grandes reformas energéticas que eludieron a López Obrador y seguir limitando la participación del sector privado en el sector energético, justo cuando la inversión directa extranjera en México está en auge en otras industrias. Por Rebecca Conan Producción de crudo en México Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
German power spot index to deliver above expectations
German power spot index to deliver above expectations
London, 15 April (Argus) — The German power spot index has delivered below over-the-counter (OTC) expectations in April as wind and solar output have averaged above seasonal norms. But forward prices suggest that the spot index is on track to deliver above OTC expectations on declining wind generation in the second half of the month. The German spot index averaged €50.49/MWh over 1-16 April, below the April OTC contract's expiry of €54.90/MWh. But the index is on track to deliver at around €58.46/MWh across the month, based on the weighted-average of the expiry of week 16 at €65.70/MWh and the latest assessments of weeks 17 and 18 at €71.20/MWh and €59.50/MWh, respectively, and the spot index in April. Combined onshore and offshore wind generation has climbed to 19.65GW this month, well above the 13.4GW average for April 2019-23. And solar output has averaged above 8.6GW, a new high for April. Rising renewable output has weighed on thermal generation, with combined gas, coal and lignite-fired output down to 10.5GW, the lowest of any month in over seven years. Working day-ahead clean dark spreads for 40pc-efficient plants have averaged minus €28.46/MWh for delivery on 1-15 April from minus €13.88/MWh in March. Clean spark spreads for plants with 55pc efficiency have fallen by €14.68/MWh on the month and into negative territory at minus €11.17/MWh. And clean lignite spreads for 36pc-efficient plants have averaged minus €13.51/MWh from €0.29/MWh last month. The seasonal rise in temperatures has also lowered demand by 1.6GW on the month to 50.35GW in April, outpacing the month-on-month decline in generation by over 300MW. And Germany has been a net exporter on six days this month, compared with seven days in all of March . But wind output is forecast to remain below the 2019-23 average on most days in the second half of the month, data from analytics platform Kpler show, while peak-load solar output is expected to remain below a load factor of 30pc — or 16GW — over 16-21 April, which could support the spot index and imports. And the May contract rose to its highest in almost three months on its latest assessment on 12 April at €64.60/MWh, up from under €50/MWh on its first assessment as the front month. Thermal generating margins for base and peak-load delivery in May have averaged well below zero in April, with even higher-efficiency coal, lignite and gas-fired plants priced out of the mix. Germany is likely to continue importing from its Swiss and French neighbours in May. Swiss hydropower stocks widened their surplus to the long-term average in week 14, while precipitation in Sion is forecast well above seasonal norms next month and Alpine snowpack is well above average, which could boost inflows when snowmelt picks up in May. And French nuclear unavailability is forecast to drop by 4GW on the month to 15.6GW in May, well below the 25.4GW in May last year. By Adrien Seewald German April power generation GW Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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