It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Tuesday, June 06, 2023
Shell Halts Unit At Europe’s Biggest Refinery Due To Leak
Shell said on Tuesday that it had halted a unit at Europe’s largest oil refinery, Pernis in Rotterdam, due to a leak.
“Due to a leak on one of our units, it was decided to temporarily take it out of service for repair,” the UK-based supermajor said in a statement carried by Reuters.
Shell declined to comment for Reuters on what type the leak was, which unit was halted, or how long the outage would last.
Pernis is the largest oil refinery in Europe and has the capacity to process more than 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil.
Last autumn, during the height of the fuel and energy crisis in Europe, the Pernis refinery suffered a malfunction, which exacerbated an already worsening fuel supply situation in northwest Europe due to strikes in France.
Before the latest unit halt, the Pernis refinery had undergone major maintenance that lasted nearly two months. Shell began major maintenance of a number of installations at the refinery in early March. The facility was scheduled to see maintenance work completed by the end of May.
Unlike last year, the fuel market in Europe is not as tight and refining margins have slipped in recent months.
“The reduced flows and muted demand growth both locally and in key export markets have taken a toll on values including narrower refining margins and EBOB-RBOB spreads,” Refinitiv analyst Raj Rajendran told Reuters last week.
Gasoline refining margins in northwest Europe fell to $20.70 a barrel as of June 2 due to lower exports from the region to West Africa.
In the week to May 31, total fuel stocks held at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) oil trading hub declined amid higher demand for road fuels, according to Insights Global, which had noted that Shell’s Pernis refinery “appears to be back online after an extensive maintenance period, according to market participants.”
By Tom Kool for Oilprice.com
Panamanian activists oppose EIA approval to Orla Mining’s gold project
The project is expected to produce 81,000oz per year of gold over a mine life of six years.
The Cerro Quema is to be developed in multiple phases.
Credit: Jingming Pan on Unsplash.
Activist groups in Panama are protesting against the recent environmental impact assessment (EIA) approval granted by the Panamanian Ministry of Environment for Orla Mining’s Cerro Quema project, reported Mining.com.
Making separate announcements, the Santeño Front, the Environmental Advocacy Center (CIAM) and the Mesoamerican Ecclesial Ecological Network, the Diocese of Chitré and Cáritas Social Pastoral have cautioned about the project’s potentially harmful impacts on the south-west Azuero region.
The region is already facing deforestation, drought, mangrove destruction and the pollution of freshwater sources.
CIAM was cited by the website as saying: “As the country gears up to face a serious incoming drought related to the El Niño phenomenon, the acting minister of the environment, Diana Laguna, approved the environmental impact assessment that greenlights the exploitation of gold in Cerro Quema.
“For eight years, different environment ministers had avoided approving the project, which involves the use of cyanide and other chemicals, thus endangering water sources in the districts of Tonosí and Macaracas, Los Santos province, an area already subjected to water-related problems.”
CIAM also said that the environmental impact assessment for the project could be outdated as it was initially submitted in 2015.
Located on a 15,000-hectare concession on the Azuero Peninsula in Los Santos, the Cerro Quema is an oxide heap-leach gold project.
It is estimated to hold 560,000oz of total probable reserves (21.7 million tonnes at 0.80 grams per tonne).
According to the 2021 pre-feasibility study (PFS), the project proposes to have an open-pit operation with the capacity to produce 81,000oz per year of gold over a mine life of six years.
To be developed in multiple phases, the project would mine ore from the La Pava and Quema-Quemita pits.
Tata to build $1.6 billion Indian EV battery plant, Gujarat says
Bloomberg News | June 4, 2023 | Bombay House, head office of the Tata Group in Mumbai.
India’s salt-to-software conglomerate Tata Group signed an agreement with the Gujarat state government to set up a giga-factory for manufacturing lithium-ion cells, with an estimated initial investment of around 130 billion rupees ($1.6 billion).
Tata Agaratas Energy Storage Solutions Pvt., a subsidiary of Tata Group, signed a memorandum of understanding on Friday to establish an electric-vehicle battery plant that will have a production capacity of 20 gigawatt hours, generating direct and indirect employment for more than 13,000 people, according to a state government document posted on its website.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is working toward making the world’s most-populous nation carbon net zero by 2070. Still, India is lagging behind nations like China and the US in adopting electric transport.
The Tata plant would make Gujarat a leader in lithium-battery manufacturing and the group will receive assistance in setting up a production eco-system in the state, the state government said. A Tata Group representative declined to comment.
Tata Group’s decision comes at a time when its unit Jaguar Land Rover is considering setting up a major EV battery plant in the Britain. Tata favors a factory in England over Spain after the UK government offered a support package, Bloomberg reported in May.
(By P R Sanjai)
Australia maps all of its tailings dams
Staff Writer | June 6, 2023 | Mount Keith nickel mine, Western Australia.
(Reference image by Gavin Mudd, courtesy of RMIT).
Geoscience Australia, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) and the University of Queensland launched an Atlas of Australian Mine Waste, a tool that maps sites across Australia that could contain previously overlooked critical minerals.
The goal behind the development is to provide industry with additional opportunities to extract valuable resources from previously mined rock.
“Some of the minerals we need now, and into the future, may not just be in the ground—they’re also in rock piles and tailings on mine sites around the country,” Madeleine King, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, said in a media statement. “These minerals might not have been of interest when first extracted but could now be in hot demand as the world seeks to decarbonize—for example, cobalt in the tailings of old copper mines.”
So far, the group behind the Atlas has identified 1,050 sites across Australia as possible sources of critical minerals, with more to be added in future.
“This is the first time in the world that any nation has mapped all of their tailings dams and developed information on them,” Gavin Mudd, RMIT project lead, said. “These tailings could be reprocessed to extract critical minerals—those fundamental to modern technologies such as renewable energy, energy storage batteries and other technologies—and do so with much less environmental impact than developing a new mine.”
Mudd noted that future research based on the new atlas will explore the geochemistry of tailings and the potential for critical minerals, as well as the environmental benefits of reprocessing old mine waste.
Bauxite miners urge Indonesia to rethink export ban as deadline looms
Reuters | June 6, 2023 | Jakarta, Indonesia. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Days before Indonesia is set to implement a ban on exports of unprocessed bauxite, miners have again implored the government to reconsider the policy because domestic facilities are inadequate for processing all of their output.
Indonesia, the world’s sixth-largest bauxite producer, is due to stop shipments of the raw material for aluminum starting Saturday under a 2020 law banning all exports of metal ores that is aimed at driving investment in refineries.
The government last month gave miners of other ores including copper and iron a one-year relaxation to allow more time to finish smelter construction, but it kept the ban on bauxite exports.
Indonesia has three smelter-grade alumina plants and one chemical grade alumina plant, with a combined input capacity of nearly 14 million tonnes, official data show, which mining minister Arifin Tasrif said last month was enough to absorb ore production.
But Ronald Sulistyanto, head of the Indonesian Bauxite and Iron Ore Companies Association, told Reuters on Monday that production has reached roughly 30 million tonnes per year, which could force miners to cease activity if there is no market for their excess ore.
The bauxite export ban was intended to replicate Indonesia’s success in attracting foreign investors into nickel processing after a ban on outbound shipments of unprocessed ore in 2020.
However, starting at roughly $1.2-billion, a bauxite processing facility can cost triple that of a nickel pig iron smelter, and miners have struggled to secure bank financing since 2009 when Indonesia first announced a plan for banning exports, said Sulistyanto, whose group represents 28 miners.
“Our members are hoping that there will be a re-evaluation by the government if they want this mining industry to move forward,” he said. The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry has not responded to the group’s pleas.
“The miners want to develop these smelters, but they need support instead of punishment,” he added, calling for authorities to guarantee bank loans for alumina smelters.
However, Irwandy Arif, a special staff of the mining minister, told Reuters that companies have been given enough time to comply and the ban will be implemented as planned.
The government could consider exempting some miners from the ban if their smelters are at least half-built, but there has been no material progress in seven of eight alumina projects underway, Irwandy told Reuters.
The government has tried to facilitate meetings between mining companies and banks, but could not provide guarantees, Irwandy said.
“One of the criteria was progress in smelter construction, and for bauxite, there was very little progress which made it difficult for the government to consider an exemption,” he said.
The ban is unlikely to have a significant impact to the global market as China, the world’s largest aluminum producer, can procure bauxite from producers such as Guinea and Australia, which can both ramp up output, according to Fitch Solutions.
Industry experts have argued that because of available alternatives, Indonesia’s bauxite ban is unlikely to attract foreign investment – unlike in nickel.
Chinese unicorn claims breakthrough with all-weather EV battery
A Chinese battery startup claims to have overcome one of the key sticking points for electric car owners — the loss of power capability and range in cold climates.
Greater Bay Technology says its new Phoenix cell is made with superconducting materials and contains thermal management technology that can heat the battery back from -4F to 77F in five minutes. That allows the lithium ion battery to operate as normal and charge within six minutes in all weather conditions, according to Huang Xiangdong, Greater Bay’s co-founder and chairman.
“We all know the range of EVs is greatly affected in cold regions, making it a terrible user experience,” said Huang. “The Phoenix battery not only addresses the long charging time for EVs, but other pain points. It doesn’t matter if it’s a hot day or a cold day, the Phoenix battery’s range won’t be affected.”
Spun out of state-owned automaker Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. in 2020, the startup is a new entrant to China’s battery-making industry which includes major players such as Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., BYD Co. and Gotion High-tech Co. — who are all working on new batteries to make EVs safer, faster to charge and drive longer distances.
Greater Bay has already become a unicorn — a startup valued at over $1 billion — within two years of its founding. Its first generation battery is an extreme fast charge cell, which aims to recharge an EV in the same amount of time it takes to refill a fuel tank. It’s said to fully charge within 15 minutes for an average range of 500 kilometers (310 miles) on a charger with sufficient output. This battery is fitted in the V Plus electric SUV from GAC’s Aion, the third-most popular EV brand in China behind BYD and Tesla Inc.
Huang studied automotive engineering in Italy during the 1980s and did postdoctoral work at Fiat’s research center for five years before returning to China in 1991 to teach. He headed GAC’s R&D Center for 10 years from 2006, during which time many of the company’s popular models such as the GS4 SUV were developed. Huang retired in 2016 but later co-founded Greater Bay in 2020 with fellow GAC veteran Pei Feng, who serves as the startup’s chief executive officer.
While the journey from development and lab testing to mass production will take some time, the Phoenix battery will be powering some of Aion’s EVs next year and the startup is also in talks with other carmakers to use the cell, which has a range of 1,000 kilometers in a single charge according to Huang.
“Once EVs can be driven and maintained like gasoline cars, then there’s a greater chance for mass adoption,” he said.
Protein helps separate rare earths more efficiently than new tech
Staff Writer | June 4, 2023 | A sample of a clay containing rare earths. (Image by Patrick Mansell, courtesy of Penn State University).
Penn State University scientists have discovered a new mechanism by which bacteria can select between different rare earth elements, using the ability of a bacterial protein to bind to another unit of itself, or “dimerize,” when it is bound to certain rare earths, but prefer to remain a single unit, or “monomer,” when bound to others.
By figuring out how this molecular handshake works at the atomic level, the researchers have found a way to separate these similar metals from one another quickly, efficiently, and under normal room temperature conditions. In their view, this strategy could lead to more efficient, greener mining and recycling practices for the entire tech sector.
“Biology manages to differentiate rare earths from all the other metals out there—and now, we can see how it even differentiates between the rare earths it finds useful and the ones it doesn’t,” Joseph Cotruvo Jr., lead author of the Nature paper about the discovery, said in a media statement. “We’re showing how we can adapt these approaches for rare earth recovery and separation.”
Cotruvo explained that rare earth elements, which include lanthanide metals, are in fact relatively abundant but they are dispersed.
“If you can harvest rare earths from devices that we already have, then we may not be so reliant on mining it in the first place,” Cotruvo said. Mining and recycling
The issue is that regardless of source, the challenge of separating one rare earth from another to get a pure substance remains.
“Whether you are mining the metals from rock or from devices, you are still going to need to perform the separation. Our method, in theory, is applicable for any way in which rare earths are harvested,” he said.
Conventional rare earth separation practices require using large amounts of toxic chemicals like kerosene and phosphonates, similar to chemicals that are commonly used in insecticides, herbicides and flame retardants. The separation process requires dozens or even hundreds of steps, using these highly toxic chemicals, to achieve high-purity individual rare earth oxides.
“There is getting them out of the rock, which is one part of the problem, but one for which many solutions exist,” Cotruvo said. “But you run into a second problem once they are out because you need to separate multiple rare earths from one another. This is the biggest and most interesting challenge, discriminating between the individual rare earths because they are so alike. We’ve taken a natural protein, which we call lanmodulin or LanM, and engineered it to do just that.” Bring in the bugs
Cotruvo and his lab turned to nature to find an alternative to the conventional solvent-based separation process, because biology has already been harvesting and harnessing the power of rare earths for millennia, especially in a class of bacteria called “methylotrophs” that often are found on plant leaves and in soil and water and play an important role in how carbon moves through the environment.
Six years ago, the lab isolated lanmodulin from one of these bacteria, and showed that it was unmatched—over 100 million times better—in its ability to bind lanthanides over common metals like calcium. Through subsequent work, they showed that it was able to purify rare earths as a group from dozens of other metals in mixtures that were too complex for traditional rare earth extraction methods. However, the protein was less effective at discriminating between the individual rare earths.
Cotruvo explained that for the new study, the team identified hundreds of other natural proteins that looked roughly like the first lanmodulin but homed in on one that was different enough—70% different—that they suspected it would have some distinct properties. This protein is found naturally in a bacterium (Hansschlegelia quercus) isolated from English oak buds.
The researchers found that the lanmodulin from this bacterium exhibited strong capabilities to differentiate between rare earths. Their studies indicated that this differentiation came from the ability of the protein to dimerize and perform a kind of handshake.
When the protein binds one of the lighter lanthanides, like neodymium, the handshake (dimer) is strong. By contrast, when the protein binds to a heavier lanthanide, like dysprosium, the handshake is much weaker, such that the protein favours the monomer form.
“This was surprising because these metals are very similar in size,” Cotruvo said. “This protein has the ability to differentiate at a scale that is unimaginable to most of us—a few trillionths of a meter, a difference that is less than a tenth of the diameter of an atom.”
To visualize the process at such a small scale, the researchers used X-ray crystallography, which allows for high-resolution molecular imaging.
They determined that the protein’s ability to dimerize dependent on the lanthanide to which it was bound came down to a single amino acid—1% of the whole protein—that occupied a different position with lanthanum (which, like neodymium, is a light lanthanide) than with dysprosium.
Because this amino acid is part of a network of interconnected amino acids at the interface with the other monomer, this shift altered how the two protein units interacted. When an amino acid that is a key player in this network was removed, the protein was much less sensitive to rare earth identity and size. The findings revealed a new, natural principle for fine-tuning rare earth separations, based on the propagation of miniscule differences at the rare earth binding site to the dimer interface.
Using this knowledge, collaborators at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory showed that the protein could be tethered to small beads in a column and that it could separate the most important components of permanent magnets, neodymium and dysprosium, in a single step, at room temperature and without any organic solvents.
Cotruvo believes that the concept of binding rare earths at a molecular interface, such that dimerization is dependent on the exact size of the metal ion, can be a powerful approach for accomplishing challenging separations.
“This is the tip of the iceberg,” he said. “With further optimization of this phenomenon, the toughest problem of all—efficient separation of rare earths that are right next to each other on the periodic table—may be within reach.”
Japanese miners see Chile’s tax hikes deterring new investment
Japan’s miners see higher taxes in Chile potentially discouraging them from investing in new mines in the world’s top copper producer but would not lead them to quit existing projects, the head of an industry body said on Monday.
Growing nationalism in resource-rich countries is challenging miners as they hunt for minerals needed for the energy transition, even as they face rising costs, tougher environmental rules and pressure from investors to decarbonise.
Lawmakers in Chile gave final approval in May for a long-awaited mining tax reform, hiking taxes and royalties that large copper and lithium producers must pay the government.
“Higher tax won’t lead to withdrawal from existing mines, but it may have an impact on new development projects,” Akira Nozaki, the chairman of the Japan Mining Industry Association told Reuters in an interview.
“Obviously, profitability will decline due to higher tax, making new mining development increasingly difficult,” he said.
Two major Japanese miners decided to reduce exposure to their key copper projects in Chile in recent years, with JX Nippon Mining & Metals planning to sell a majority stake in Caserones mine and Sumitomo Metal Mining 5713.T divesting its stake in the Sierra Gorda mine last year.
Still, Nozaki, who is also the president of Sumitomo Metal, said Japanese miners could make major new investments in copper projects, drawing on their experience from past projects.
In April, the Group of Seven (G7) countries pledged $13 billion in fiscal support to strengthen supply chains of critical minerals. Japan has already secured a supplementary budget of more than 200 billion yen ($1.4 billion) for key minerals.
“We welcome their agreement and the Japanese government’s recent adoption of various measures to reinforce supply chains of critical minerals that are essential for realising a green society,” Nozaki said.
“We’ll use the funds to move toward carbon neutrality and secure a stable resource supply,” he said.
The industry also has high hopes for the state-backed Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security’s (JOGMEC) latest action and an acceleration of Japanese government’s resource diplomacy, Nozaki said.
JOGMEC said last month it has selected 24 countries based on the supply potential of resources and fuels to Japan, and will analyse the characteristics and circumstances of each resource-rich country and work on diplomatic approaches.
For minerals, the analysis will focus on copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt, and rare earths that are essential for decarbonization, it added.
($1 = 140.1300 yen)
(By Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Sonali Paul)
Polymetal considers divestment of Russian business
Reuters | June 5, 2023 Credit: Polymetal International
Gold and silver producer Polymetal International is considering divesting its Russian operations and senior managers have resigned from Russia-related duties after the imposition of US sanctions, the company said on Monday.
Washington last month included Polymetal’s Russian business and Polyus – the largest gold producers in Russia – on its latest list of sanctions targets, aiming to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
“In light of recent developments, and in the interests of preserving shareholder value, the board and the special committee have decided to consider all possible options available for divestment of JSC Polymetal and its subsidiaries,” Polymetal International said in a statement.
JSC Polymetal is the holding company for the group’s Russian assets, which accounted for about two thirds of group revenue in 2022.
“Vitaly Nesis, chief executive officer, and Maxim Nazimok, chief financial officer, have resigned from all executive positions with, and terminated their employment at, JSC Polymetal and its subsidiaries,” Polymetal said.
Nesis and Nazimok will retain their positions with Polymetal International to continue to focus on its Kazakhstan assets as well as plans to re-domicile from Jersey to Kazakhstan and shift its primary listing from London to Astana.
Polymetal said it was ring-fencing its Russian subsidiaries to ensure sanctions compliance.
“All service agreements between (Polymetal International) and its non-Russian subsidiaries, and JSC Polymetal and its subsidiaries, have been terminated,” the company said.
(By Alexander Marrow and Caleb Davis; Editing by David Goodman)
PRIVATIZATION
Kenya Seeks to Generate $10B Leasing Five Ports to Private Investors
Mombasa is losing volumes to competition and bottlenecks (file photo)
Authorities in Kenya are seeking private investors to take over the operations and management of five critical ports, a development aimed at bolstering the competitiveness of the maritime sector and generating $10 billion for the financially beleaguered government.
Kenya has historically been the gateway to the East Africa region through the port of Mombasa but is facing increasing competition from neighboring Tanzania. The government is reviving a previously dismissed plan to concession sections of Kilindini Harbour, Dongo Kundu port, Kisumu port, and Shimoni Fisheries port to investors through a public-private partnership.
Through the Kenya Development Corporation (KDC), a state-owned development authority, the Kenyan government also intends to concession the Lamu port which continues to be a laggard with less than 25 ships docking at the facility in three years of operation. During the period, the port in which Kenya invested $367 million to build the first three berths and which was touted to be a major transshipment hub when it was commissioned in May 2021, handled less than 2,500 TEU.
In order to inject new life into the Lamu port and unleash the potential of the other four ports the Kenya government is renewing the plans to bring on board private investors to operate the facilities. Included in the proposal is the Kisumu port which they believe can become a major petroleum products transportation hub.
KDC has prepared a detailed prospectus to attract private investors to take up the operations and management of the ports with the Kenya Ports Authority and the Lapsset Corridor Development Authority being designated as the implementing agencies of the planned leasing.
“The ports are confronted with the challenge of congestion and, therefore, higher dwell times for cargo. The ports will be leased/concessioned to private operators with a landlord-type port management system,” said KDC in the prospectus.
The decision by the current Kenyan administration of President William Ruto to bring on board private investors represents a change of heart after similar plans by the previous administration was abruptly shelved after sparking controversies. There had been allegations of illegalities, with global ports operator and logistics giant DP World caught in the middle.
In the latest attempt, Kenya is not only hoping to attract private operators to take over the operations and management of the five ports but is also seeking $304 million worth of private investment for the facilities.
Part of the investments will be directed toward the development of agribulk and liquid bulk terminals at the port of Lamu as well as storage tanks to enhance its competitiveness thus attracting more shipping lines. In its prospectus, KDC is suggesting the potential increase in the port’s cargo volumes by seeking private investments in the agribulk and liquid bulk terminals that are set to cost $210 million and $94 million respectively.
“Agribulk import demand at the port of Lamu is projected to increase from 547,000 tonnes in 2023 to 3.3 million tonnes in 2045. The investment will enable facilitation of import and export to meet the demand of grain requirements, creation of job opportunities,” said KDC.
The agency is also seeking investments in storage tanks at the port at a cost of $30 million to meet the expected demand for refined oil product imports and crude oil exports. They project volumes to increase from 6.8 million tonnes in 2020 to 19.3 million tonnes in 2045. Refined oil imports are forecast to increase from 395,000 tonnes in 2023 to 2.6 million tonnes in 2045, while crude oil exports are expected to increase to three million tonnes.
The Kenyan government contends that leasing the ports to private investors will enhance the competitiveness of the northern corridor that serves not only Kenya’s hinterlands but also landlocked neighboring countries of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, and parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Increasing bottlenecks on the corridor that has been the main gateway to East Africa through the port of Mombasa have in recent times come under intense competition from the central corridor in Tanzania as more importers and exports opt to use the port of Dar es Salaam.
Kenya National Bureau of Statistics data shows the volume of cargo handled by Mombasa port dipped for the first time in five years with total cargo dropping to 33.74 million metric tonnes in 2022 from 34.76 million tonnes the previous year. The 2.9 percent drop pushed the volumes to the lowest levels since 2018 when it stood at 30.92 million tonnes.
During the 2021/2022 financial year, Dar es Salaam port recorded a 10.3 percent increase in throughput handling 17.85 million tonnes, up from 16.19 million tonnes in the previous financial year, according to Bank of Tanzania data.
The fact that Kenya is losing its edge to Tanzania is evident after Dar es Salaam port overtook Mombasa port in the latest World Bank ranking of the world’s most efficient ports. The 2022 Container Port Performance Index ranks Mombasa at position 326 against Dar es Salaam at position 312 from a total of 348 ports used in the survey.
