Big Oil Doubles Down on LNG as Renewables Falter

ANY EXCUSE WILL DO

By Irina Slav - Aug 06, 2024Supermajors are scaling back renewables projects and investments due to poor returns compared to LNG.

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• Big Oil prioritizes growing its LNG business, seeing strong demand for natural gas in the medium to long term.
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• Renewables commitments falter as European oil and gas firms focus on energy security amid the energy crisis and skyrocketing prices.
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The supermajors continue to bet on LNG while scaling back renewables projects and investments as oil and gas returns continue to trump the poor profits from renewables.   

The world’s top international oil and natural gas firms are sanctioning new LNG projects and buying stakes in new developments as they see demand for natural gas growing in the medium to long term.  

Bound by the pledges to return more cash to shareholders, Big Oil is betting on growing its much more lucrative LNG business than on wind, solar, or biofuels, where returns have been poor for years and haven’t really taken off despite soaring global capacity additions. 

In recent years, LNG trading has reaped a lot of profits for the European majors, while nearly all of them have had to take impairment hits on renewables projects in Europe and the U.S. 

The LNG market is set to see a wave of new supply from 2026 and could be oversupplied from 2026-2027 until the end of the decade. Yet, Big Oil is confident that demand will be there and that their trading strategies and the moves to lock in customers from LNG projects will pay off. 

Renewables Commitment Falters

At the same time, Europe’s top oil and gas firms haven’t seen improved market and business conditions to warrant the major push into renewables they had pledged before the energy crisis and skyrocketing prices in 2022 upended plans and shifted the focus onto energy security. 

BP, for example, booked a pre-tax impairment charge of $540 million in the third quarter last year related to U.S. offshore wind projects. BP and Equinor’s filing to renegotiate the power purchase agreements associated with the Empire Wind 1 and 2 and Beacon Wind 1 wind farms off the coast of New York was rejected. 

BP said in June that it was scaling back this year’s plans for the development of new sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel biofuels projects at its existing sites, pausing planning for two potential projects while continuing to assess three for progression. 

“This is aligned with bp’s drive to simplify its portfolio, focusing on value and returns,” the UK-based supermajor said. 

Weeks later, the other UK-based giant, Shell, said it was pausing on-site construction work at a biofuels plant in Rotterdam amid weak market conditions, taking a $780-million impairment charge for the second quarter for this. 

The pause at the 820,000 tons-a-year biofuels facility at the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Rotterdam in the Netherlands was needed “to address project delivery and ensure future competitiveness given current market conditions,” the company said. 

LNG Bet 

At the same time, both Shell and BP, as well as France’s TotalEnergies, are looking to further grow their LNG portfolios by raising their own liquefaction volumes and gaining access to additional third-party volumes. 

“In our Integrated Gas business, we said we would continue to grow our LNG portfolio by increasing both our liquefaction and access to third-party volumes,” Shell’s CEO Wael Sawan said last week when the company reported better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter. 

Shell has extended existing partnerships in Oman, invested in backfills in Manatee in Trinidad and Tobago, and agreed to acquire Pavilion Energy in Singapore to increase portfolio length, the executive of the world’s top LNG trader added. 

Shell also leads the LNG Canada joint venture project in Kitimat, British Columbia, where it is “working hard to achieve first production” by the middle of 2025, Sawan said.  

In addition, Shell, BP, TotalEnergies, and Japan’s Mitsui have just signed a deal with Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC to take 10% each in the Ruwais LNG project in the UAE as international partners.  

BP works towards building an LNG portfolio of 30 million tons by 2030, up from 23 million tons of long-term LNG portfolio last year. The company is looking at long-term contracts and at short-term market opportunities, Carol Howle, EVP, trading and shipping at BP, said on the earnings call last week. 

TotalEnergies has also been busy sanctioning LNG projects in recent months. The French group gave the green light to the Marsa plant in Oman, Marsa LNG, as well as the Ubeta gas project in Nigeria, which will supply Nigeria LNG.  

“These projects will not only contribute to the objective to grow our upstream by 2% to 3% per year in the next five years, but they will also boost the underlying free cash flow generation and ultimately shareholder distributions,” CEO Patrick Pouyanné said on TotalEnergies’ earnings call. 

“I think there is a fundamental structural demand coming from India, and we are convinced that the Indian market will take the relay I would say, for the traditional, Korea, Japan, and even China,” Pouyanné added. 

LNG demand in China is becoming more seasonal as Beijing is “moving very quickly on these renewables, continuing to increase its coal production,” the executive noted. 

Big Oil is positioning for a major boost in global LNG demand as a way to earn more money from their core business amid low or negative returns in the renewable energy industry.  

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

An Indian billionaire has an audacious plan to take down part of China's economic master plan

Story by habraham@insider.com (Hannah Abraham) • 20h • 


Karan Adani, the CEO of Adani Ports, plans to take over the operation of a growing number of seaports in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia. NOAH SEELAM/Getty Images© NOAH SEELAM/Getty Images

The Indian billionaire Karan Adani announced plans to challenge Chinese dominance in global seaports.

Adani Ports has received "in-principle" approval for a $2 billion project in Da Nang, Vietnam.

Adani Group has plans for ports in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia, Bloomberg said.

Karan Adani, the son of one of Asia's richest men, wants to loosen China's grip on seaports and transform India into a major trading hub.

"We are working on making India the center point of the overall supply chain from east to west," he said in an interview with Bloomberg for its "Inside Adani" series.

Adani, the CEO of Adani Ports, said that the company had received an "in-principle" approval from the Vietnamese government for a $2 billion greenfield project in Da Nang.

This would be the latest addition to the Adani Ports' portfolio. In 2022, it won a joint bid on the Israeli government's tender to buy the Haifa Port for $1.2 billion.

It also owns port assets in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and the Port of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
Loosening China's grip

India has long had fears over China surrounding it with ports. The trade infrastructure in the Indian Ocean is often referred to as China's "string of pearls."

China's Belt and Road Initiative (also referred to as the New Silk Road) involves buying up multiple ports across the world to build a sea route running from the coast of China through the major transit route of the Indian Ocean and the busiest maritime points of the Middle East, and ending in Europe.

The Washington Post reported the majority of investments in Chinese-owned ports had been made by companies owned by the Chinese government, which would make the Chinese Communist Party the biggest operator of the ports that fuel global supply chains.

The Council on Foreign Relations says that China operates or has ownership stakes in at least one port on every continent except Antarctica. Ninety-two out of the 101 ports were active as of 2023.

The Financial Times cited a report by the Qianzhan Industrial Research Institute saying that China invested at least $40 billion in coastal port infrastructure between 2016 and 2021.

The outlet also said that China had 76 port terminals able to support large ships carrying more than 14,000 20-foot containers, while southern and southeastern Asian countries had just 31 between them.

Fortune India reported that 75% of India's transshipped cargo was handled by ports outside the country.

The Adani Group wants to change that.

Making India the world's factory

The company has openly aligned its business interests with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's development agenda of making India the world's factory.

Earlier this month, it welcomed the first mother ship in the first phase of its port in Vizhinjam harbor, a project undertaken with the state government of Kerala in India.

Expected to be completed in 2028, the seaport aims to handle up to half of India's container-transshipment needs.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Adani Enterprises, the group's main company, reported revenue of $11.6 billion in 2024, and Adani's father, Gautam Adani, owns a 75% stake.

The 62-year-old is worth over $80 billion and announced his succession plan on Monday — naming his sons, Karan and Jeet, and nephews Pranav and Sagar as heirs to the Adani Group.

The Adani family has previously faced scrutiny for its close ties to Modi and allegations of preferential treatment from the Modi government.

The Adanis frame the association as a desire to improve the country, with the chairman's message on the Adani Group website promising to "foray into sectors where the country needs to establish a foothold" and affirming that it will "look at these opportunities as part of our national duty."

PowerMaster launches tech to help remediate mine tailings

Published by Jane Bentham, Editorial AssistantGlobal Mining Review, Monday, 05 August 2024 

PowerMaster has announced the launch of its Revolution technology, which, it says, efficiently crushes materials, remediates mine sites, and reprocesses valuable tailings.

The Revolution is an eco-friendly gyroscopic grinder designed to process various materials, from large rocks to fine tailings. The technology is billed as cutting the cost of processing by half and reducing the environmental impact of mining operations by reclaiming valuable minerals, cutting emissions, and minimising waste.

“The world is running out of space for safe and sustainable waste disposal, while the mining industry faces significant challenges with tailings management and site remediation, all while aiming to keep costs and environmental impacts low,” Haiku York, President of PowerMaster, said. “With millions of tonnes of tailings produced daily, effective waste management is critical. At PowerMaster, we’re committed to addressing these challenges with our Revolution technology, which efficiently crushes materials, turns waste into valuable resources and reduces environmental contamination.”

By eliminating excess moisture from tailings, the Revolution processes waste into dry material, minimising groundwater leaching. Additionally, the technology excels in primary, secondary, and tertiary crushing, enabling sustainable ore processing from various materials optimising resource recovery, the company says. The Revolution can be custom programmed for all types of materials and is adjustable for any output size.

“There’s really no other machine like it,” added Lila York, Director of Special Projects of PowerMaster. “Our product is half the price of other machines, one-tenth the maintenance cost, has virtually no downtime, and when something gets in it that shouldn’t be there, it doesn’t blow up like other machines do. In fact, the Revolution is the safest machine on the market today. Once people realise how much it reduces both waste and costs, we expect to see a huge market demand.”

Royal Mint opens new factory to recover gold from e-waste

Up to 4,000 tonnes of Printed Circuit Boards from items like laptops and TVs will be processed by The Royal Mint per year.

Royal Mint opens new factory to recover gold from e-waste (Matthew Horwood/The Royal Mint)

Nina Massey   THE INDEPENDENT  Aug  6, 2024

The Royal Mint has opened a new factory to remove gold from old computers and phones and turn it into jewellery and collectables.

The facility provides a sustainable source of precious metals and reduces reliance on mining.

Up to 4,000 tonnes of printed circuit boards (PCBs) from e-waste like old laptops and TVs will be processed by The Royal Mint per year.

It takes around 600 mobile phones to create one of the rings from the Mint’s 886 collection, weighing approximately 7.5g – similar to the weight of a £1 coin.

Some 4,000 tonnes of circuit boards contain half a tonne of gold, 1,000 tonnes of copper, 2.5 tonnes of silver and 50kg to 60kg of palladium.

On average, one tonne of circuit boards produces 165gm of gold, equating to around £9k.

Mark Loveridge, business unit director at Precious Metals Recovery, told the PA News Agency the factory processes were a “world first”, adding that the Mint is very good at taking things “from a beaker to an industrial scale”.

He also said: “If we look at e-waste generated the UK is the second worst offender in terms of the amount we produce per capita.

“It’s the equivalent of about 25 kilos a person. And that’s the equivalent to about a 50-inch TV, just to give you an idea in terms of what that kind of translates into.

“We all have our jar at home where we put our coins into. It’s the same with our electronic devices.

“You have probably got a couple of mobile phones sat in a drawer and TV in the back bedroom or the garage or something that needs to come back into that supply chain so it can be recycled and those materials recovered.”

The silver and gold are used by the official maker of British coins to produce jewellery and commemorative coins.

The non-precious metal that is recovered (copper, tin, steel, aluminium) is sent to other companies as a raw material to turn them into products such as sheets/bars/rods to manufacture new products.

The idea is that recovered, high-purity gold will reduce the dependence on traditional mining activity and encourage more sustainable industry practices.

As things stand, The Royal Mint receives the circuit boards, which are then processed in a newly built specialised plant, which separates all the components and metals.

The Royal Mint is transforming for the future, and the opening of our Precious Metals Recovery factory marks a pivotal step in our journey

Anne Jessopp, chief executive at The Royal Mint

The pieces containing the gold are then sent on to a second facility on the South Wales site, which uses world-first patented chemistry from Canadian cleantech company Excir to remove the metal.

Unlike other gold extraction processes that require extremely high temperatures, and take a lot of time, the new process at the Mint uses a washing machine-style spinning drum that washes the gold-containing parts in a special acid mix that dissolves the precious metal in just four minutes.

It also does this at temperatures of just 20C to 25C, using a lot less energy than other gold extraction methods.

The factory is powered by electricity, and there are wind turbines and a solar farm on site.

Everything from the process is recycled, or reused, from the plastic on the circuit boards to the acid used to dissolve the gold.

Anne Jessopp, chief executive at The Royal Mint, said: “The Royal Mint is transforming for the future, and the opening of our Precious Metals Recovery factory marks a pivotal step in our journey.

“We are not only preserving finite precious metals for future generations, but we are also preserving the expert craftsmanship.

“The Royal Mint is famous for creating new jobs and reskilling opportunities for our employees.

“We have ambitious plans, and I am proud that we are safeguarding The Royal Mint for another 1,100 years.”

As well as recycling the circuit boards it receives, The Royal Mint is also working towards receiving the entire items – computers, mobile phones, server equipment – so it can be involved in the full process.

Gold price surpasses $2,500 for first time ever

Published by admin on 05/08/2024



Gold surpassed $2,500 per ounce for the first time in history on Friday in the wake of rising geopolitical tensions and new data indicating a weakening US economy.

Gold contracts for December delivery reached an all-time high of $2,522.50 in the early trading hours, before shedding its gains to trade at $2,475.90 an ounce by 11:00 a.m. ET.

Sign Up for the Precious Metals Digest

Spot gold posted a marginal loss of 0.5% at $2,432.86 per ounce, having hit as high as $2,477.10 — just within grasp of its all-time peak of $2,483.73 set earlier this month.

Current AUD dollar prices for pure bullionGold AUD $ 3749.21
Platinum AUD $ 1498.65
Silver AUD $ 43.83

Ranking: Topmost Canadian Miners In Terms of Market Cap


Incidentally, Agnico Eagle operates the country’s biggest gold mines in terms of output- Detour Lake and Canadian Malartic.




SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Agnico Eagle topped the list of Canada-based miners by market cap. The market cap of the company stood at C$51.4 billion as of late-July this year. Incidentally, Agnico Eagle operates the country’s biggest gold mines in terms of output- Detour Lake and Canadian Malartic.

The company was second in the ranked list of Canadian miners by net income in 2023. With a net income of $1.9 billion, it stood second to Barrick Gold Corporation, whose annual net income totalled $1.95 billion during the previous year.

Ammar Al-Joundi, President and CEO, Agnico Eagle commented that the company continues to remain focused on capital discipline. The company is currently advancing the former Hope Bay gold mine project in Nunavut. Also, it plans to undertake a $1 billion underground expansion at Detour Lake, which is expected to boost its annual output to 1 million ounces, he added.

In second and third place were Barrick Gold and Wheaton Precious Metals, with market cap of C$44.7 billion and C$37.9 billion respectively. The other miners in the top ten list along with their market cap in billion Canadian dollars are as follows: Nutrien (34.5), Franco-Nevada Corp. (33.3), Teck Resources (32.6), Cameco (27.7), Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (24.8), Fist Quantum Minerals (13.7) and Kinross Gold (15).

Indian gold industry forms self-regulatory body with WGC backing

Reuters | August 6, 2024

Image: Pixabay

India’s gold industry, with the support of the World Gold Council (WGC), has established a self-regulatory organization in a bid to increase consumer confidence and restore trust, the WGC said on Tuesday.


The newly-formed Indian Association for Gold Excellence and Standards (IAGES) aims to promote fair, transparent and sustainable practices in the bullion industry, along with regulatory compliance, a code of conduct, and an audit framework, said Sachin Jain, CEO of WGC’s Indian operations.

India is the world’s second-biggest gold consumer after China, but the industry has a trust deficit with consumers and even the government due to poor practices by a small section of the business, he said.

“The purpose of this association is to provide accreditation based on a very strict audit. After the audit, the member will earn the IAGES logo, which they can display,” Jain told Reuters, without specifying details of the audit framework.

Industry bodies such as Indian Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA), All India Gems and Jewellery Council of India (GJC) and Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) would be part of the IAGES, Jain said.

The WGC would take the initiative to popularize IAGES among retail consumers and would also finance the campaign, he added.

India’s gold demand in the June quarter fell 5% from a year ago, but consumption in the second half of 2024 is set to improve due to a correction in local prices following a steep reduction in import taxes, the WGC said last month.

(By Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Varun H K)

IAMGOLD reaches commercial production at Ontario gold mine

Published by Jane Bentham, Editorial Assistant
Global Mining Review, Tuesday, 06 August 2024 

IAMGOLD Corporation has announced that the Côté Gold Mine has reached commercial production.

Côté Gold is located in Ontario, Canada and is operated as a joint venture between IAMGOLD, as the operator, and Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. Commercial production is defined as the achievement of reaching a minimum of 30 consecutive days of operations during which the mill operated at an average of 60% of nameplate throughput of 36 000 tpd.

“I would like to commend our teams at Côté Gold who have come together to achieve another great milestone as we progress and ramp up what we believe will be one of Canada's largest gold mines and a model for modern mining in Canada,” said Renaud Adams, President and Chief Executive Officer of IAMGOLD. “Since achieving the first pour of gold on 31 March 2024, our teams have spent the last four months methodically and iteratively testing and ramping up all facets of the mine. This process has required remarkable commitment, ingenuity and teamwork to bring all the systems online together to achieve this milestone.”

“With commercial production behind us we continue to focus on improving plant availability towards our goal of Côté exiting the year at 90% of nameplate throughput. Further, in May we completed our equity financing which has positioned us well to repurchase the 9.7% interest in Côté this November and return to 70% ownership thereby gaining more exposure to this foundational and keystone asset for the benefit of all our stakeholders.”

The ramp up of the plant continues to progress, with all major equipment demonstrating the capability to operate at or above design levels. After the initial pour, focus early in the second quarter was on testing the processing circuits to handle nameplate loads. The primary components of the overall plant responded well achieving at or above nameplate throughput, though availability of the dry-side of the processing facilities was limited, in particular in the crushing and screening circuits. The Company is planning a multi-day shutdown in September to address and mitigate the impact of traditional wear and tear on availability of the circuits, in support of the goal to ramp up throughput to 90% by the end of the year.

 

Calibre Announces Receipt of the Federal Environmental Assessment Approval for the Berry Pit at the Valentine Gold Mine,

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, 

Aug. 06, 2024

GlobeNewswire

 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Calibre Mining Corp. (TSX: CXB; OTCQX: CXBMF) (the "Company" or "Calibre") is pleased to announce that the Honorable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada, has approved the addition of a third open pit, the Berry Deposit (“Berry Pit”), at its 100% owned Valentine Gold Mine (“Valentine”). In August 2023, an environmental assessment update was submitted to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (“IAAC”) regarding proposed changes to Valentine to include the Berry Pit, and associated infrastructure changes. Following IAAC’s thorough analysis of the submitted update, including the results of consultation with Indigenous groups, communities, stakeholder organizations, and reviewing the results of IAAC’s public comment process, Minister Guilbeault signed an Amended Decision Statement approving the addition of the Berry Pit.

Darren Hall, President and Chief Executive Officer of Calibre, stated: “I am pleased to announce that we have obtained Federal Environmental approval for the development of the Berry Pit at Valentine. With this approval and the recent issuance of Provincial mining and surface leases for Berry and associated infrastructure, we now have the major approvals required for the three-pit mine plan included in the 2022 Feasibility Study."

“Since acquiring Valentine in January, we have progressed engineering to 98%, advanced construction from 50% to 77%, and employed an experienced operations team, positioning us to deliver first gold in Q2, 2025.”


To view the Amended Decision Statement and IAAC’s Analysis of the Berry Pit Expansion, please click the links below:

Link 1 – Amended Decision Statement

Link 2 – Analysis of Marathon Gold Corporation Proposed Changes to the Valentine Gold Project

About CalibreCalibre is a Canadian-listed, Americas focused, growing mid-tier gold producer with a strong pipeline of development and exploration opportunities across Newfoundland & Labrador in Canada, Nevada and Washington in the USA, and Nicaragua. Calibre is focused on delivering sustainable value for shareholders, local communities and all stakeholders through responsible operations and a disciplined approach to growth. With a strong balance sheet, a proven management team, strong operating cash flow, accretive development projects and district-scale exploration opportunities Calibre will unlock significant value.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD


“Darren Hall”

Darren Hall, President & Chief Executive Officer

For further information, please contact:

Ryan KingSVP Corporate Development & IRT: 604.628.1012E: calibre@calibremining.comW: www.calibremining.com

Calibre’s head office is located at Suite 1560, 200 Burrard St., Vancouver, British Columbia, V6C 3L6.

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The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither reviewed nor accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

NEWS RELEASE TRANSMITTED BY Globe Newswire

 

EDM Provides Progress Report at the Scotia Mine

Newsfile Corp.

Tue, Aug 6, 2024, 

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Halifax, Nova Scotia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 6, 2024) - EDM Resources Inc. (TSXV: EDM) ("EDM" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it continues to make significant progress for a restart of operations at the Scotia Mine.

"We are pleased to update our investors that EDM continues to make significant progress on an extensive range of tasks that are necessary to advance the Scotia Mine to production," said, Mr. Mark Haywood, President & CEO. "Whilst completing the application to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans is one of the major tasks our teams are working on, we are also busy advancing several other important and necessary steps in parallel so that the mine can be ready for a production decision as soon as permitting is completed," he added.

• Completion of all seasons of sampling for Atlantic Salmon DNA as required by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans ("DFO").

• Ongoing reconnaissance work to identify additional potential locations for stream and/or river restoration required by the DFO for the fish habitat offsetting plan.

• Widespread outreach to our First Nation Stakeholders in Nova Scotia as part of the important social license initiatives for re-starting the Scotia Mine.

• Ongoing surface and ground water modelling as part of the application for DFO.

• Preparation of Mine Plans for the geotechnical assessment work prior to mine production.

• Launch of our new company website at www.EDMresources.com.

• Preliminary assessment of high-grade ores that will be used in the Density Media Separation pilot plant testing. Results of the DMS Study are expected to be available in mid-September.

About EDM Resources Inc.

EDM is a Canadian exploration and mining company that has full ownership of the Scotia Mine and related facilities near Halifax, Nova Scotia. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, EDM also holds several prospective exploration licenses near its Scotia Mine and in the surrounding regions of Nova Scotia.

The Company's common shares are traded on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "EDM". For more information, please contact: