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MSC scraps carbon offsets, focuses on reducing CO2

  • : Emissions, Fertilizers, Hydrogen, Natural gas, Oil products
  • 21/07/23

Switzerland-based MSC Cruises has decided not to pursue carbon offsetting and instead focus on directly reducing its carbon footprint.

In 2019, the leisure cruise company said it would invest in carbon offsets to meet future emissions regulations, but it has now decided to invest in research and development of alternative marine fuels, such as ammonia and hydrogen. MSC's vessels travel in the North Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean, in addition to cruising in South America, the Middle East and Asia.

EU proposals to include marine fuel CO2 emissions in its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and cut marine fuel greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity in EU waters could incentivize MSC to speed up its transition to alternative marine fuels.

"A core goal of MSC Cruises is to meet the industry target of 40pc improvement in emissions intensity by 2030, compared to a 2008 baseline," the company said, referring to an International Maritime Organization's (IMO) directive.

MSC will take delivery of three new LNG-powered vessels. The first one, MSC World Europa will arrive in 2022, and the other two in 2023 and 2024. MSC will also test fuel cells which can covert LNG into electricity and "are much more efficient than conventional engines". MSC Cruises also has nine of its 17 vessels outfitted with exhaust scrubbers.

Before Covid-19, MSC was expecting to burn around 679,500t of marine fuel in 2020, but it burned 290,596t, emitting 908,393t of CO2. In April 2020 all of MSC's 17 ships were placed in layup and only two became operational later in 2020. By comparison, the company burned 650,306t of marine fuel in 2019 and emitted 2mn t of CO2.


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24/09/18

US Fed cuts rate by half point, signals more: Update

US Fed cuts rate by half point, signals more: Update

Adds chairman Powell comments, economic projections. Houston, 18 September (Argus) — The US Federal Reserve cut its target interest rate by 50 basis points today, the first rate cut since 2020, with policymakers signaling they expect to make another half-point worth of cuts by the end of 2024. The Fed's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) lowered the federal funds rate to 4.75-5pc from the prior range of 5.25-5.5pc, which was a 23-year high. The Fed had kept the target rate unchanged since July 2023 after hiking it for more than a year in the most intense rate-tightening campaign in four decades to quash inflation, which peaked at 9.1pc in mid-2022. "The committee has gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2pc, and judges that the risks to achieving its employment and inflation goals are roughly in balance," the FOMC said in its statement after the two-day meeting. "Job gains have slowed, and the unemployment rate has moved up but remains low." In their latest economic projections, the Fed board and policymakers expect the target rate range will end 2024 near a midpoint of 4.4pc compared with an end of year midpoint of 5.1pc projected in June, which implies further cuts amounting to 50 basis points by the end of 2024. Policymakers also penciled in another 100 basis points of cuts over the course of 2025. "We're recalibrating policy down over time to a more neutral level and we're moving at the pace that we think is appropriate given developments in the economy," Fed chair Jerome Powell told a press conference after the meeting. "The economy can develop in a way that will cause us to go faster or slower. The US economy is in a good place and our decision today is designed to keep it there." The Fed's economic projections see core Personal Consumption Expenditures inflation — the Fed's favorite measure of inflation — ending 2024 at a median rate of 2.6pc, down from a prior forecast of 2.8pc. Policymakers see core PCE inflation falling to a median of 2.2pc by the end of next year. The outlook for the unemployment rate for the end of 2024 climbed to 4.4pc from 4pc penciled in at the June meeting. Policymakers expect gross domestic product (GDP) growth to end 2024 at an annual 2pc, slightly down from a prior 2.1pc projection. The latest policy meeting comes as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) eased to an annual 2.5pc in August , down from 2.9pc in July, the Labor Department reported on 11 September. Inflation had ticked up to 3.5pc in March from 3.1pc in January, prompting the Fed to turn more cautious about beginning its rate cuts. US job growth has recently slowed sharply, falling to an average 116,000 in the three months through August from 211,000 for the prior three months. The jobless rate rose to 4.3pc in July, the highest in three years, before edging down to 4.2pc in August. By Bob Willis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Volatile energy prices risk the transition: IEF


24/09/18
24/09/18

Volatile energy prices risk the transition: IEF

Houston, 18 September (Argus) — High or volatile energy prices risk undermining emissions reductions efforts, International Energy Forum (IEF) secretary-general Joseph McMonigle said today at the Gastech conference in Houston, Texas. "If the public starts to connect high prices and volatility to the energy transition, we're in big trouble and we risk losing public support for the transition and climate policy," he said. McMonigle made his comments on a panel with several energy ministers, who discussed the issues of balancing energy security concerns with transitioning to cleaner fuel sources for electricity. When asked what he would consider a "call to action" for the global energy sector, McMonigle suggested investments in emerging technologies. "I think to allow trading of carbon credits is really important to accelerate the transition," he said. "Also, to provide financing for CCS (carbon capture and storage), which I think is one of the technologies that does not have enough investment behind it." By David Haydon Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Citgo auction result delayed amid last-minute motions


24/09/18
24/09/18

Citgo auction result delayed amid last-minute motions

Houston, 18 September (Argus) — The US court-appointed special master overseeing the auction of US refiner Citgo plans to object to a last-minute motion from the Venezuelan government to delay the sale process by four months. The Republic of Venezuela and state-owned oil company PdV filed a motion on Tuesday seeking a four-month pause in the sale of its refining subsidiary Citgo, which is being auctioned off to satisfy debts owed by PdV. Special master Robert Pincus said in a court filing today that he intends to object to Venezuela's motion for a pause. The last-minute motion from Venezuela comes days after the US District Court for the District of Delaware was expected to announce results of the winning bidder. The court asked for a second extension to the auction process in August, delaying announcing a successful bidder to on or about 16 September with a sale hearing on 7 November. But Pincus is now dealing with last-minute legal challenges filed last week outside of the Delaware courts by so-called "alter ego" claimants seeking to "circumvent" the Delaware court's sales process and "jump the line" for enforcing claims against PdV, the special master said in a filing last week. Bidders for Citgo's 804,000 b/d of refining capacity, terminals, retail fuel stations and other plants expect the assets to be sold free and clear of future claims by PdV creditors. Unresolved legal liabilities could lower the value bidders are willing to pay for Citgo, decreasing the pool of money available to those owed by PdV. By Nathan Risser Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Wash. regulators plan for cap-and-trade vote


24/09/18
24/09/18

Wash. regulators plan for cap-and-trade vote

Monterey, 18 September (Argus) — Washington regulators are making a "contingency" plan in the event of a successful repeal of the state's emissions cap-and-trade program. Initiative 2117, which looks to repeal the state's cap-and-trade program and prevent any similar program from taking its place, will be on state ballots for the 5 November election. "We are doing contingency planning in case the ballot measure passes and will update our covered entities when we do have information — and I know this initiative is creating a lot of uncertainty," said Stephanie Potts, senior planner with the state Department of Ecology today at the Argus North American Biofuels, LCFS & Carbon Markets Summit in Monterey, California. The agency also remains focused on continuing to implement the program, "assuming it continues," she said. Washington's "cap-and-invest" program requires large industrial facilities, fuel suppliers, and power plants to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 45pc by 2030 and by 95pc by 2050, from 1990 levels. The department is in an ongoing rulemaking process to expand and amend its carbon offset protocols, and also continues work to gather input for linkage with the Western Climate Initiative, a linked carbon market between California and Quebec. Potts said Washington expects to have a linkage agreement in place by the end of next year. The uncertainty introduced by the ballot initiative over the fledgling market's future has tempered carbon credit prices and activity this year. Argus assessed Washington carbon allowances (WCAs) for December delivery at $30.25/metric tonne on 4 March, their lowest price since the program's inception in 2023. The drop in prices at that time coincided with a statement by Ecology outlining how a successful repeal would end the agency's authority over the program. Earlier this year, the state Office of Financial Management (OFM) released a fiscal impact statement on a successful repeal that assumed an effective repeal date would be 5 December. By Denise Cathey and Jessica Dell Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Brazil allocates R514mn to combat fires: Correction


24/09/18
24/09/18

Brazil allocates R514mn to combat fires: Correction

Corrects value of funding in headline and lead. Sao Paulo, 18 September (Argus) — Brazil will allocate R514mn ($94.3mn) to combat fires spreading across the country, presidential chief of staff Rui Costa and environment minister Marina Silva said this week. The funds are considered "extraordinary" and not a part of the country's overall budget because they are part of a special budget authorized by the supreme court to tackle climate change. Brazil is facing severe drought in all states but two, leading to fires in several regions. The flames are likely to cut the country's 2024-25 sugarcane output , while low river levels have roiled logistics . Part of the funds will be allocated to the environment ministry to reinforce monitoring and combating fires, Costa said. The federal police and the national public security force will also receive extra resources to reinforce investigations and battle environmental crimes. The armed forces will also receive some funds to support operations to extinguish the flames. Another portion will be earmarked to buy food for families in the north that are affected by the low water levels caused by droughts. The government will also issue another provisional measure this week to ease the release of resources from the Amazon Fund, Costa said. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, supreme court chief justice Luis Roberto Barroso, head of the senate Rodrigo Pacheco and lower house speaker Arthur Lira all attended the announcement as a show of unity among the branches. Brazil is also considering increasing penalties for environmental crimes, which Silva considers to be "too low" at the moment. "The sentence of two to four years in prison is light," she said. "And some judges go further and completely relax this sentence." Brazil — which is trying to bolster its image as a climate leader — is also considering creating a climate authority and technical-scientific committee to "support and coordinate the federal government's actions to combat climate change." By Lucas Parolin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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