IDB to finance R1.4bn for Sao Paulo's EV fleet

Spanish Market: Battery materials, Electricity, Metals
14/05/25

The Interamerican Development Bank (IDB) will provide R1.4bn ($250mn) in financing for Brazil's Sao Paulo city to further expand its electric vehicle (EV) bus fleet.

Sao Paulo has 527 electric buses and forecasts more 2,200 clean fuel buses by 2028, the government said. The city has a total fleet of 12,000 buses.

In April, the Bank of China approved $100mn for Sao Paulo to buy more electric buses. But the city did not disclose how many buses it would buy.

Sao Paulo also received R2.55bn from Brazil's development bank Bndes to buy 1,387 electric buses in December.

By Maria Frazatto

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22/12/25

Chile watchdog clears SQM-Codelco deal

Sao Paulo, 22 December (Argus) — Chile's comptroller general's office (CGR) formally acknowledged on 19 December the legality of lithium mining contracts between the country's economic development firm Corfo and a planned joint venture between Codelco and SQM, clearing the way for the partnership to proceed with conditions. Corfo's mining lease and project contracts are a key legal step in allowing state-owned miner Codelco to partner with private company SQM to mine lithium in the Atacama desert under the national lithium strategy of President Gabriel Boric, who leaves office in March. Even though it acknowledged the legality of the transaction, CGR imposed a set of conditions that need to be resolved before the deal can be finalized, all of which must happen before 31 December. The acknowledgement comes after Corfo withdrew and resubmitted a legal resolution that CGR flagged for inconsistencies on early December. CGR said the effectiveness of the approved contracts hinges on Codelco submitting documentation related to the creation of its lithium subsidiary, Minera Tarar, for retroactive legal review. CGR noted that the Codelco-SQM joint-venture agreement includes a clause tying its closing to a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation into SQM being "substantially finished," a condition the watchdog said must be waived or modified for the deal to proceed. Corfo and Codelco must send proof to CGR by year-end proving that they complied with all conditions imposed by the watchdog. The CGR has also set some ongoing guardrails to the deal, including a mechanism that ensures Codelco — under the national lithium strategy — remains the majority owner and controller of the Atacama lithium assets unless the watchdog approves a change of ownership. It also said that payments to regional government bodies must follow strict standards and may be audited. SQM-Codelco joint-venture moves forward By acknowledging the deal's legality, the CGR paves the way for the joint venture between Chilean private company SQM and state-owned Codelco to move to its closing stages, pending the resolution of the watchdog's conditions. CGR's approval was the last necessary external sign-off needed for the agreement to materialize, according to Codelco. Chile's exiting economy minister Nicolas Gráu celebrated CGR's nod, saying that it will play a big part in "allowing Chile to double lithium production in the next decade". Codelco said it will now move forward with SQM to finalize the joint-venture, an indication that it will meet and work to resolve all of CGR's conditions. The state-owned miner said that only the final legal and administrative steps are left for the deal to close. The partnership agreement, which will allow both companies to extract lithium from the Atacama salt flats from 1 January 2031 to 31 December 2060, has been undergoing a lengthy approval process since May 2023. Eight countries and over 20 Chilean regulatory bodies signed off on the deal. CGR is still performing an audit on "certain operations associated with" the SQM-Codelco tie-up , including Codelco's financial advisory contract with investment bank Morgan Stanley, as well as Codelco's operations, to determine whether public resources are being used appropriately. It will also review claims from a congressional investigative commission regarding the transparency of the negotiation process, SQM's tax situation, and a clause that relates to Codelco's obligation to sell 100pc of extracted potassium to SQM under the partnership. The Atacama desert's brines, from which the joint venture will produce lithium, contain potassium that is precipitated and extracted alongside lithium. If the CGR identifies legal issues in its audit, it can order corrective measures, seek internal disciplinary action within the parties and refer its findings to prosecutors, though it lacks the authority to void the deal, leaving full responsibility with SQM and Codelco to finalize the partnership. By Pedro Consoli Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Viewpoint: CSAPR sentiment bearish despite coal use

22/12/25

Viewpoint: CSAPR sentiment bearish despite coal use

Houston, 22 December (Argus) — Expectations for lower prices is likely to persist in the federal Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) allowance markets next year as they remain oversupplied, even with higher levels of coal-fired generation. The seasonal NOx markets have been more active this year compared to 2024, when prices essentially flatlined due to regulatory and legal uncertainty brought about by a barrage of lawsuits filed against the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its "good neighbor" plan. That plan, which the agency finalized in 2023 under former president Joe Biden, sought to help downwind states meet the 2015 national air quality standards for ozone. The plan imposes more stringent ozone season NOx caps for power plants in more than 20 upwind states, as well as setting new limits on some industrial facilities. But the plan is now essentially defunct after the US Supreme Court halted its implementation in June 2024. This led the EPA to return to less-rigorous NOx emissions limits tied to older ozone standards and reshuffle the participating states into the Group 2 and "expanded" Group 2 markets. Argus launched its assessment of the latter in February 2025. EPA said in March it intends to reconsider the good neighbor plan in order to give states more freedom in developing their own ozone reduction plans. The announcement led to the US District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals pausing a lawsuit challenging the legality of the good neighbor plan until the agency completes its reconsideration, and which could culminate in new regulations by fall 2026. But those developments did little to move the seasonal NOx markets, which have already been sluggish due to oversupply and weak compliance demand, leading to more dramatic price fluctuations when trades do occur. Argus has assessed Group 2 allowances at $875/short ton (st) since 1 December and expanded Group 2 allowances at $850/st since 24 October. It is unclear how US president Donald Trump's current hostility towards environmental regulations will affect the administration's attitude towards the existing CSAPR allowance trading markets, but it seems likely that they are here to stay. The EPA likely is "digging into the air transport modeling that they have to understand what their options are," and which could potentially echo its determination during Trump's first term that states had adequately addressed downwind pollution, said Carrie Jenks, executive director of Harvard Law School's Environmental and Energy Law Program. "The EPA is committed to advancing cooperative federalism and working with states on state implementation plans (SIPs) to provide clean air for all Americans," the agency said in December. But extensive case law suggests that the EPA has little room to give states more power to manage emissions as they see fit. Both the DC Circuit Court and the US Supreme Court have made it clear that the EPA must intervene if a state does not sufficiently lower its emissions, Jenks said. "So the EPA's hands, regardless of who's in the White House, are really tied," she said. As a result, the EPA will likely try to prolong the issue by giving states more time to draw up their own ozone-reduction plans. The debates over those plans could revolve around how the modeling of emissions is conducted and interpreted. Even if that modeling is challenged in the courts, it can take years for litigation to get resolved. More coal, more emissions Despite the continued dearth of activity in the seasonal NOx markets, increases in coal-fired generation, a significant source of NOx and SO2 emissions, have buoyed the outlook in those markets, heightening expectations for higher emissions. During the past year, stronger power demand and higher natural gas prices have allowed coal to take a larger market share, which has resulted in increased coal-fired power in grids that serve states covered by CSAPR. But NOx emissions during this year's ozone season, which ran from May through September, were lower than expected, according to market participants. Cumulative emissions in the Group 2 and expanded Group 2 markets rose by just 1pc and 4.2pc, respectively, and remained well below their overall limits. It was likely more cost-effective for power plants to run their NOx controls than to purchase or surrender additional allowances for compliance. Still, given the Trump administration's pro-coal agenda, it remains to be seen for how long increases in coal generation will continue and to what extent that will affect the CSAPR markets. Conversations over ballooning data center demand have also bled into the seasonal NOx markets as the Trump administration seeks to leverage coal to power that boom. There are currently a lot of moving parts that make it difficult to make predictions, including how competitive coal is compared to other energy sources such as renewables, where data centers get built, their demand flexibility, and the federal and state regulatory landscapes in the coming years, Jenks said. By Ida Balakrishna Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Viewpoint: Price battle pushes Brazil HRC lower in 2025

22/12/25

Viewpoint: Price battle pushes Brazil HRC lower in 2025

Sao Paulo, 22 December (Argus) — Brazilian hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices declined throughout 2025, despite solid economic growth and steady demand in most sectors, with prices ending the year lower because of pricing competition between domestic and imported HRC. Argus - assessed imported HRC cfr Brazil dropped to $515-550/metric tonne (t) on 11 December, down from $535-555/t on 2 January. Argus -assessed HRC ex-works fell to R3,600-3,900/t ($655.80-702.80/t) in the latest assessment compared with R4,000-4,300/t at the start of the year. Brazilian mills resisted pressure from a rising influx of lower-priced imports stemming from an oversupply in China, holding prices steady for the first five months of the year. But mills yielded to price cuts in June, when price spreads were as much as 38pc higher than imports. Buyers were able to secure deals below R3,400/t in July, market participants told Argus . Tighter safeguard measures around the world and anti-dumping actions targeting Chinese material helped redirect steel to countries with looser trade defenses, including Brazil. Imports hit an all-time high of 6mn t in the year through Novembe r , up by 7pc from the same period last year, industry chamber Aço Brasil said. These volumes added to domestic production and boosted apparent consumption — the sum of production and imports minus exports — by 2.5pc to 24.8mn t year-to-date November. Service centers and trading companies took advantage of the lower import prices to build up their inventories. High stock levels ultimately weighed on demand and dragged down offer levels. Domestic and import sellers were forced to slash prices in June to spur buying interest in an already oversupplied market. Import HRC prices slipped below $500/t in July. Sales up The Brazilian real strengthened by 14.2pc against the dollar year-to-date mid-December, boosting import competitiveness for 2025. Imports offered another advantage beyond pricing: lower financial costs from international trading firms. Brazilian mills rarely operate on credit, and even if they did, borrowing costs in Brazil reached their highest level in 20 years in 2025. Brazil's 15pc target interest rate, which spurs higher commercial lending rates, has dampened end-user demand, but not enough to slow steel consumption significantly. Despite the rising import flows, domestic sales remained stable on the year at 19mn t year-to-date November, Aço Brasil said. Full-year 2025 domestic sales are expected to match the high-21mn t level of a year earlier, which was the highest since a demand surge during the pandemic. Brazil's gross domestic product grew by an annualized 2.7pc through September, Brazil's statistics bureau IBGE said, on track to beat the central bank's full-year growth forecast of 2.25pc. The solid economic growth has supported steel demand, especially in the construction and automotive sectors. Real estate construction starts jumped to 307,366 units year-to-date September, up by 8.4pc compared with the same period in 2024, the Brazilian construction industry chamber (CBIC) said. Real estate sales rose 4pc to 312,240 properties over the same period, CBIC data show. The Minha Casa Minha Vida low-income housing program accounted for nearly half of both sales and new units. Brazil produced 2.46mn vehicles in January-November, up by 4.1pc year-on-year, automaker association Anfavea said. Registrations rose 1.4pc to 2.1mn units over the same period, while automobile exports surged by 39pc to 510,130 units, driven by higher shipments to Argentina, Colombia and Chile. The annual drop in HRC prices in Brazil was driven less by demand and more by fierce competition between domestic producers and import suppliers, which pushed prices lower despite stable consumption. Brazilian HRC prices are expected to remain under pressure in early 2026 as high inventories and competitive import offers persist, a trader said. A modest recovery is expected in the second half of the year, depending on stronger domestic demand and potential trade defense measures, market participants told Argus . By Isabel Filgueiras Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Viewpoint: Biogas growth uneven, shipping drives 2026

22/12/25

Viewpoint: Biogas growth uneven, shipping drives 2026

London, 22 December (Argus) — Europe's biomethane market faces uneven growth in 2026, with numerous unsolved policy hurdles and as adoption of the EU's revised renewable energy directive (RED III) reshapes national compliance frameworks. Shipping demand will remain a key driver, particularly for certified subsidised product. RED III's overall 2030 target gives EU member states the option to reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs) by 14.5pc, or reach a 29pc renewable energy share. RED II only required countries to reach a 14pc renewable energy share. Some states have already transposed RED III, including the Netherlands and Germany , and pivoted incentive schemes to reward fuels on a GHG reduction basis. This is setting up biomethane with low or negative carbon intensity (CI) as a fuel of choice for suppliers obligated to comply with the regulation in the Netherlands, where previously it lagged behind cheaper, energy-intense biofuels. Another EU regulation that favours biomethane use is FuelEU Maritime, which came into effect in January 2025 requiring shipowners to reduce fleet emissions by 2 pc/yr in 2025 and 2026. Over-compliance can be sold under pooling schemes — which have proven profitable for bio-LNG bunkering. The mandate became a major market price driver for renewable gas guarantees of origin (RGGOs) — certificates issued to companies producing gas made from non-fossil fuel sources — and this should continue into 2026. New schemes, either under RED III or domestic obligations, that will come into effect in 2026 will compete with maritime demand for supply. Most 2026 Dutch and Danish supply has already been sold to the maritime sector. Growing Netherlands As well as a pivot to GHG-based compliance with a new ERE ticket system under RED III, the Netherlands began work on a Green Gas Blending Obligation in November. While implementation before late 2027 seems unlikely, progress should boost RGGO forward pricing. Dutch biomethane liquidity could be bolstered if the government approves mass-balancing , a method to track and verify biomethane when it is injected into the gas grid system and becomes indistinguishable from conventional gas. A motion was proposed in parliament in November, but a recent government response indicates this is unlikely. Bio-LNG must be unsubsidised, certified and physically delivered to qualify for ERE tickets, otherwise it will be treated with a fossil gas CI of 94g CO2e/MJ when calculating a fuel supplier's overall mandate level. Steady Germany, France Germany will remove double-counting for waste-based biofuels under its GHG reduction quota (THG) in 2026, but biomethane should remain the cheapest compliance route for fuel suppliers, as rising mandates will support demand. Most German imports come from the UK or Denmark. The former may benefit from Danish prices inflated by maritime demand, despite questions about UK eligibility with German schemes. France's biogas production certificate (CPB) blending mandate starts in January, which should significantly boost domestic demand. But the country has delayed its RED III transposition , which includes a new GHG-based IRICC ticket system, to 2027. The current energy-based TIRUERT transport ticket system will remain in place for a year, limiting transport-sector uptake. It is unclear if IRICCs can be generated from biomethane in 2027, but 3pc renewable gas obligations for transport will start in 2028, increasing thereafter. Cross-border trade and bio-LNG bunkering should remain limited. French biomethane can only be exported as an ex-domain cancellation , the cancellation of RGGOs in one country's registry for use in a different country. This carries risk to buyers, as ownership is not necessarily transferred. Subsidised biomethane cannot be liquefied at French LNG terminals for use outside the country. French bio-LNG must be exported via mass-balancing to other terminals in the EU, for use under FuelEU Maritime. Uncertain UK The UK's access to EU markets hinges on access to the Union Database for gaseous Biofuels (UDB), now targeted for launch by end-summer 2026. Uncertainty about third-country treatment could restrict EU trade — a critical issue given the UK exported more than half its RGGOs in the first three quarters of 2025, mostly to Germany, Norway and Switzerland. The UK is consulting on replacing volume-based RTFC tickets with a GHG-based system, but any changes would not be enacted until 2027. Overall in Europe, biomethane remains well positioned in GHG-based systems, but policy implementation delays will probably slow overall market growth. The Netherlands, Denmark and Germany should remain anchors for European pricing, and Spain should consolidate its role as a maritime hub. But several countries risk lagging behind without RGGO registries, export hub access, policy incentives and subsidy reform. By Madeleine Jenkins Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Japan's Niigata assembly backs Tepco's nuclear return

22/12/25

Japan's Niigata assembly backs Tepco's nuclear return

Osaka, 22 December (Argus) — Japan's Niigata prefectural assembly has supported its prefectural governor's decision to approve the restart of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear reactors operated by utility Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco). The assembly passed a vote of confidence on Niigata governor Hideyo Hanazumi on 22 December. He had sought the assembly's judgement on his plan to authorise the restart of the No.6 and No.7 reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, each with a capacity of 1,356MW. Hanazumi had previously indicated that he would step down if the motion was rejected. The motion was attached to a supplementary budget request of ¥31mn ($197,048) for the April 2025-March 2026 fiscal year, intended to support activities related to the restart of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant. Hanazumi plans to meet Japan's trade and industry minister Ryosei Akazawa on 23 December to discuss the restart of the nuclear plant. The endorsement will allow Tepco to move towards restarting its reactors for the first time since they triggered the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear disaster, after a powerful earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. The plant, which has remained off line since March 2012, is Tepco's sole nuclear station, after it scrapped the damaged Fukushima Daiichi and nearby Fukushima Daini plants. The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant comprises of seven reactors with a combined capacity of 8,212MW, of which the No.6 and No.7 units have cleared the stricter post-Fukushima safety inspections. Tepco has yet to file an application with the country's nuclear regulation authority (NRA) for screening of the five other reactors. The utility is also mulling scrapping the No.1 and No.2 reactors. Tepco is expected to prepare for the restart of the No.6 reactor first, given that the No.7 unit will be required to remain shut until August 2029 for the installation of anti-terrorism facilities. The No.6 reactor is expected to resume operations after clearing pre-use inspections, which typically last for three weeks to one month. This means that Tepco will be able to restart the No.6 reactor in January at the earliest. The return of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant could be a milestone in Tepco's progress in nuclear power generation after the Fukushima disaster, with the No.6 unit marking Tepco's first reactor to be restarted after the disaster. Electricity from the nuclear plant will be sent to the Tokyo metropolitan area, with the nuclear plant — located in the Tohoku region — mitigating the risk of a power shortage in Japan's capital. A single nuclear reactor can produce 10 TWh/yr of electricity, and can save the company an estimated ¥100bn/yr, Tepco previously said. The return of the No.6 reactor is also expected to reduce CO2 emissions by around 3.3mn t/yr, it added. By Motoko Hasegawa Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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