Saturday, February 03, 2024

Elon Musk’s record $55.8bn pay package was always absurd

Stocktake: Musk’s incentive package dating from 2018 was the largest executive compensation plan in history

Most Tesla shareholders backed the pay deal with Elon Musk. Photograph: Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times

Proinsias O'Mahony
Sat Feb 3 2024 -

US judge Kathaleen McCormick upset Elon Musk when she ruled that Tesla should not have agreed to the “unfathomable” $55.8 billion (€51.2 billion) incentive package – the largest executive compensation plan in history – for Musk in 2018.

Musk devotees argue that he earned it. The full payment required Tesla’s market capitalisation to exceed $650 billion, something which looked impossible in 2018, when Tesla was worth some $50 billion. Most (73 per cent) Tesla shareholders supported the deal, and Musk’s efforts ultimately enriched ordinary shareholders as well as himself.

However, this argument misses the point. Tesla’s board is meant to be independent and to represent ordinary shareholders when negotiating with Musk. It’s not ideal, then, that Tesla’s lead negotiator had a 15-year business relationship with Musk; that another had a 20-year relationship with Musk and regularly went on holidays with his family; that Tesla’s general counsel was Musk’s former divorce lawyer and “whose admiration for Musk”, the judge noted, “moved him to tears during his deposition”.

The board argued that the pay deal would “motivate and incentivise’' Musk, but he already owned 21.9 per cent of Tesla; even without the bonus, he stood to gain over $10 billion for every $50 billion in market capitalisation increase. The $55.8 billion plan just wasn’t necessary, the judge ruled.

Indeed, one could argue the plan wasn’t just unnecessary, but that it backfired. More money for Musk meant more money to spend on distractions such as Twitter (now X) – a purchase that has proved unpopular with weary Tesla shareholders.

Sinn Féin leader finally sworn in to head Northern Ireland’s government

ByRob Harris
February 4, 2024 —

London: Michelle O’Neill, from the Sinn Féin party that is committed to Irish reunification, has been elected as first minister of Northern Ireland in a watershed moment which has ended a two-year political standoff in the region.

O’Neill is the first non-unionist politician to head Stormont’s devolved government in the province established more than a century ago by partition as a bastion of pro-UK unionism.

Sinn Féin vice-president Michelle O’Neill speaks after being appointed Northern Ireland’s First Minister, during proceedings of the Northern Ireland Assembly, in Belfast, on Saturday. CREDIT:

The restoration of the power-sharing executive comes two years to the day since the Democratic Unionist Party withdrew from the executive in protest at post-Brexit trading arrangements, plunging the assembly into an impasse.

Pledging to serve all sides equally, O’Neill, the vice-president of the party once considered the IRA’s mouthpiece, said while she was a republican she would be a first minister for all, including “those who cherish the union”.

“For the first time ever, a nationalist takes up the position of first minister. That such a day would ever come would have been unimaginable to my parents and grandparents’ generation,” she said.

O’Neill spoke some words in Irish but described the region both as the “North of Ireland” – the term favoured by her party – and “Northern Ireland”.

“None of us are being asked or expected to surrender who we are,” she said. “The days of second-class citizenship are long gone. Today confirms that they are never coming back. Our allegiances are equally legitimate. Let’s walk this two-way street and meet one another halfway. I will be doing so with both an open hand and with heart.”

O’Neill, 47, won plaudits when she greeted King Charles III warmly after the death of Queen Elizabeth and attended his coronation “to show respect”.

The DUP, Northern Ireland’s largest pro-UK party, came second to Sinn Féin in the region’s elections, held in May 2022, with its MP Emma Little-Pengelly drafted into the post of deputy first minister. The positions have equal legal status with neither able to function without the other.

Gerry Adams, a former Sinn Féin president, was among those in the public gallery for the ceremony and was joined by Fiachra McGuinness, son of the late former deputy first minister Martin McGuinness, who served alongside staunch unionist Ian Paisley following the Good Friday accord, which ended three decades of conflict known as The Troubles.

Both of the women have family links to the region’s troubled past, with O’Neill’s father an IRA prisoner during the conflict involving republican paramilitaries fighting to reunite Ireland, loyalist paramilitaries battling to remain in the UK, and British security forces.

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Little-Pengelly’s father was convicted in Paris in 1991 for his role in a loyalist gun-running plot, but has denied having been an arms-buyer.

Despite Sinn Féin’s victory at the 2022 election, a series of opinion polls have since found the people of Northern Ireland would still vote decisively against a united Ireland if there was a referendum, with a survey in The Irish Times last year finding almost twice as many voters who expressed a preference want to remain in the United Kingdom.

The Good Friday Agreement states that the British government should call a referendum if it “appears likely” a majority would want a united Ireland. A concurrent poll must also be held in the Republic of Ireland.

Michelle O'Neill becomes Northern Ireland's 1st nationalist first minister

'Such a day would ever come would have been unimaginable to my parents and grandparents' generation,' says O'Neill

Burak Bir |03.02.2024 -

Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill

LONDON

Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill made history on Saturday after she was appointed as Northern Ireland's first nationalist first minister.

Politicians gathered in Stormont, Northern Ireland's parliament, to appoint a series of ministers to the devolved executive, as a deal was reached for power-sharing after almost two years of political deadlock.

Michelle O'Neill has been appointed Northern Ireland's first minister, while the Democratic Unionist Party's (DUP) Emma Little-Pengelly will serve as deputy first minister.

This came after the DUP ended its boycott of Stormont after agreeing a new deal with the British government on post-Brexit trade rules.

In her first address as the first minister in parliament, O'Neill said that today “opens the door” to a shared future.

"This is an assembly for all Catholic, Protestant and dissenter, despite our different outlooks and our different views and the future constitutional position," she said.

O'Neill said that they must make power-sharing work because collectively, they are charged with leading and delivering for "all our people, for every community."

"As an Irish republican I pledge co-operation and genuine honest effort with those colleagues who are British, of a unionist tradition and who cherish the union," she added.

O'Neill noted that it is the first time that a nationalist has taken the post of first minister in Northern Ireland, saying: "Such a day would ever come would have been unimaginable to my parents and grandparents' generation."

"This place we call home, this place we love. North of Ireland or Northern Ireland, where you can be British, Irish, both or none is a changing portrait," she added.

Sinn Féin says united Ireland 'within touching distance'

03 February 2024

Sinn Féin says united Ireland 'within touching distance' as the party claim the post of Northern Ireland first minister for the first time.

Northern Ireland’s devolved government has reconvened and appointed Michelle O’Neill as first minister in a historic moment for Sinn Féin and Irish nationalism.

Mary Lou McDonald said last week that the expected restoration of power sharing in the wake of a deal between the Democratic Unionist party and the UK government came amid a “historical turning of the wheel” that would unite the island.

“In historic terms, it is within touching distance and I think that is a very exciting thing and I hope people will find that a very welcoming conversation,” the Sinn Féin leader said.

O’Neill became the region’s putative first minister when Sinn Féin overtook the DUP as the biggest party in the 2022 assembly election. But a DUP boycott to protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements mothballed Stormont.

The Stormont assembly nominated the County Tyrone republican as the region’s first nationalist first minister – and the first non-unionist executive leader since the partition of Ireland in 1921.

O’Neill avoided triumphalism and made no explicit mention of Irish unity in an inaugural address that focused on reconciliation and bread-and-butter issues.

“Wherever we come from, whatever our aspirations, we can and must build our future together,” she said. “We must make power sharing work because collectively, we are charged with leading and delivering for all our people, for every community.”

The appointment of a republican first minister represented “a new dawn” unimaginable to previous generations that grew up with discrimination against Catholics, said O’Neill. “That state is now gone.”

O’Neill will jointly lead the executive with Emma Little-Pengelly, a Democratic Unionist who was nominated deputy first minister, a post with equal power but less prestige.

Ireland's Michelle O'Neill makes history as nationalist first minister

By Brendan Hughes & Matt Fox for BBC Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland's First Minster designate, Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill, arrives at Parliament Buildings, the seat of the Northern Ireland Assembly, in Stormont on February 3, 2024. O'Neill becomes the first nationalist leader of Northern Ireland's government, when the assembly returns following a two-year boycott by the biggest pro-UK party. (Photo by Paul Faith / AFP)

Northern Ireland's First Minister designate Michelle O'Neill arrives at Parliament on 3 February. Photo: Paul Faith / AFP

Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill has made history after she was appointed Northern Ireland's first nationalist first minister.

The DUP's Emma Little-Pengelly has been appointed deputy first minister.

The return of power-sharing follows the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) ending its boycott over post-Brexit trade rules.

O'Neill told the assembly chamber it was "a historic day" which represented "a new dawn".

Northern Ireland's devolved government was restored on Saturday - two years to the day since it collapsed.

The DUP had boycotted devolved government for two years over post-Brexit checks on goods going between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

But, after striking a fresh deal with the government, they agreed to go back into power sharing.

Under power-sharing rules, devolved government in Northern Ireland can only operate on a cross-community basis with the involvement of both unionists and nationalists.

Similar to the cabinet at Westminster, the Northern Ireland Executive is the decision-making body for Northern Ireland and has powers to legislate on many areas.

After O'Neill and Little-Pengelly were nominated as first and deputy first ministers, the following took up roles as ministers in the executive:

Justice Minister: Naomi Long, Alliance
Economy Minister: Conor Murphy, Sinn Féin
Education Minister: Paul Givan, DUP
Communities Minister: Gordon Lyons, DUP
Health Minister: Robin Swann, Ulster Unionist Party (UUP)
Infrastructure Minister: John O'Dowd, Sinn Féin
Finance Minister: Caoimhe Archibald, Sinn Féin
Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Minister: Andrew Muir, Alliance

Sinn Féin's Aisling Reilly and the DUP's Pam Cameron will serve as junior ministers in the executive office.

The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) - the fifth-largest party in the assembly, with eight assembly members - did not qualify to be part of the executive and instead has gone into opposition.

The leader of the opposition, SDLP assembly member Matthew O'Toole, said the party wanted to make the institutions "work effectively for the people of Northern Ireland".

What did Michelle O'Neill say as first minister?

In the last assembly election in May 2022, Sinn Féin became the largest party at Stormont for the first time, entitling the party to nominate the first minister.

Although the first and deputy first ministers hold a joint office and have equal power, O'Neill becoming first minister is seen a landmark moment for Irish nationalism.

The prospect of a nationalist first minister "would have been unimaginable" to her parents' generation, O'Neill said after her appointment.

O'Neill also said she was "sorry for all the lives lost during the conflict - without exception".

"As first minister, I am wholeheartedly committed to continuing the work of reconciliation between all of our people."

She added that despite her support for a united Ireland, she would "serve everyone equally" and promised inclusivity and respect for all as they "deliver and work together" as the public "rightly demands".

"To all of you who are British and unionist - your national identity, culture and traditions are important to me," she added.

- This story was first published by the BBC.

Chile forest fires death toll jumps to 46, likely to keep rising

By Diego Ore for Reuters

Aerial view of burned houses in Quilpe, Chile after a forest fire.

Photo: RODRIGO ARANGUA / AFP

Forest fires raging in central Chile have killed at least 46 people, says President Gabriel Boric, warning that the death toll is likely to keep rising.

Black smoke billowed into the sky over many parts of the Valparaiso region, home to nearly one million inhabitants in central Chile, while firefighters using helicopters and trucks struggled to quell the flames.

Areas around the coastal tourist city of Viña del Mar have been some of the hardest hit and rescue teams were struggling to reach all the affected areas, Chilean authorities said on Saturday.

Boric, giving an update to the nation, said 40 people were killed in the fires and another six died from burns in hospitals.

"Given the conditions of the tragedy, the number of victims is sure to increase over the next few hours," Boric said.

"The situation is really very difficult."

The death toll means this is the deadliest outbreak of forest fires in Chile in the past decade, Chilean disaster agency Senapred said.

Throughout the country there were 92 active fires, leaving more than 43,000 hectares affected by the incident, Interior Minister Carolina Toha said earlier in the day when she reported 19 dead.

Wildfires are not uncommon in Chile over summer months and last year, on the back of a record heat wave, some 27 people died and more than 400,000 hectares were affected.

"The area with fires today is much smaller than last year (but) at this time the number of hectares affected is multiplying very rapidly," Toha said.

Between Friday and Saturday the hectares impacted by the wildfires increased from 30,000 to 43,000.

Toha said that the authorities' greatest concern was that some of the active fires were developing very close to urban areas "with the very high potential to affect people, homes and facilities".

46 reported dead in Chile as fires move into densely populated areas

Authorities urged thousands of people in the Valpariaso region to evacuate their homes. Chile's interior minister says 92 forest fires are burning.

A woman cries after losing a friend who died after a forest fire reached the Villa Independencia neighborhood in Vina del Mar, Chile.
AP Photo/ Esteban Felix

By AP via Scripps News

Feb 3, 2024

Intense forest fires burning around a densely populated area of central Chile have caused at least 46 deaths, Chile's president said Saturday evening, and officials said at least 1,100 homes had been destroyed.

In a nationally televised address, President Gabriel Boric warned that the death toll could worsen as four large fires burn in the region of Valparaiso, where firefighters have struggled to reach the most threatened neighborhoods.

Boric urged Chileans to cooperate with rescue workers.

"If you are told to evacuate don't hesitate to do it," he said. "The fires are advancing fast and climatic conditions have made them difficult to control. There are high temperatures, strong winds and low humidity."

Interior Minister Carolina Tohá said earlier Saturday that 92 forest fires were burning in the center and south of the country, where temperatures have been unusually high this week.

The deadliest of the fires were in the Valparaíso region, where authorities urged thousands of people to evacuate their homes.

In areas farther away from the fires, meanwhile, residents were told to stay at home so that fire engines, ambulances and other emergency vehicles can get about on the roads with greater ease.

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Tohá said two fires near the towns of Quilpué and Villa Alemana had burned through at least 19,770 acres since Friday. One of the fires was threatening the coastal resort town of Viña del Mar, where some neighborhoods had already been hit hard.

In Villa Independencia, a hillside neighborhood on the eastern edge of the town, several blocks of homes and businesses were destroyed. Burned cars with broken windows lined the streets, which were covered in ash.

"I've been here 32 years, and never imagined this would happen," said Rolando Fernández, one of the residents who lost his home.

He said he first saw the fire burning on a nearby hill Friday afternoon and within 15 minutes the area was engulfed in flames and smoke, forcing everyone to run for their lives.

"I've worked my whole life, and now I'm left with nothing," Fernández said.

Three shelters were set up in the Valparaíso region, and 19 helicopters and more than 450 firefighters were brought into the area to help battle the blazes, Tohá said.

The fires were burning on mountains that are hard to reach, such as neighborhoods built precariously on the edge of Viña del Mar.

Officials reported power blackouts as a result of the fire, and Tohá said that in the Valparaíso region, four hospitals and three nursing homes for the elderly had to be evacuated. The fire also destroyed two bus terminals, the interior minister said.

The El Niño weather pattern has caused droughts and hotter than usual temperatures along the west of South America this year, increasing the risk of forest fires. In January, more than 42,000 acres of forests were destroyed in Colombia by fires that followed several weeks of dry weather.

U.S. Refiners Should Brace for Trans Mountain Pipeline Launch

By Irina Slav - Feb 01, 2024

Following the news that Trans Mountain Corporation will start filling the expanded pipeline in February, with first crude to be loaded from Vancouver in April, Canadian crude prices jumped to the narrowest discount to WTI since August 2023.
U.S. refiners used to cheap Canadian crude will need to start budgeting more for the commodity from this spring.
Canadian oil producers are preparing for the 890,000 bpd in takeaway capacity growth.

When Kinder Morgan first announced its plans to expand the capacity of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline from 300,000 bpd to 890,000 bpd, it probably thought it was another major project.

Several years later, the company had given up on the project and sold it to the Canadian federal government for less than $4 billion. For a long time, it seemed like Trans Mountain would never be completed, plagued by opposition and regulatory snags.

Despite all this, it seems the pipeline is about to go into operation this year. And U.S. refiners used to cheap Canadian oil might need to reach deeper into their pockets to keep buying it.

The idea behind the Trans Mountain expansion was to turn Canada into a true oil exporter, reaching international markets rather than just the U.S. market, massive as it is. One reason this took so long was that the government of the province that was to host most of the pipeline was dead against it.

The John Horgan government was very environmentally minded. It would rather have Alberta stop all oil flows to British Columbia than endure the construction of the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline. That set back the project by months, and so did environmental protests against the pipeline.

Amid all this, the discount at which Canadian crude normally trades to WTI deepened and hardened. Canadian oil was going to the United States—all the way to the Gulf Coast—and only from there could it reach international markets. It was a complicated situation.

Then, when Kinder Morgan had enough and sold the project, the Trans Mountain expansion got a new lease of life—ironically, from a federal government that has made no secret of its distaste towards the oil industry. And it paid for that distaste. From an original $3.4-billion price tag, the Trans Mountain expansion bill swelled to over $23 billion.

Inflation and supply chain problems were among the reasons for the sixfold increase in the cost of the project, as were construction challenges due to the geology along the route of the pipe. Oil producers have not exactly welcomed the cost overruns—there were suspicions that to make up for these, Trans Mountain Corporation would charge them higher fees for carrying their crude.

Even so, producers began ramping up production in anticipation of the launch. Canadian Natural Resources said earlier this year that it would boost output in 2024 by 40,000 barrels of oil equivalent daily. Cenovus Energy announced plans to spend more on production growth as well. Oil producers are preparing for that 890,000 bpd in capacity.

Prices have responded, too. Following the news that Trans Mountain Corporation will start filling the expanded pipeline in February, with first crude to be loaded from Vancouver in April, Canadian crude prices jumped to the narrowest discount to WTI since August 2023. The current discount is about $16 per barrel.

This means that U.S. refiners used to cheap Canadian crude will need to start budgeting more for the commodity from this spring—assuming the project does not hit yet another snag. You never know, after in September the Canadian Energy Regulator gave TMC the go-ahead to change the route of the expanded pipe due to challenging terrain.

Just a month later, the same CER ordered TMC to stop work on the pipeline on the grounds of non-compliance with environmental and safety regulations. A month later, the regulator decided it could not allow TMC to go ahead with the route alternation after all because of opposition from the Indigenous community through whose land that section would pass. By December, however, the CER had changed its mind and granted TMC the permit it needed to continue work on the pipeline.

These sorts of setbacks made it really hard to believe the Trans Mountain pipeline will indeed see the light of day as an operating pipeline, but it seems it might happen after all. And that means more expensive oil for U.S. refiners. They’re about to encounter some international competition for Canadian crude.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

China’s Diplomatic Gesture to Taliban Stirs International Debate

By RFE/RL staff - Feb 02, 2024

China's move to accept the Taliban ambassador's credentials is seen as a boost to the Taliban-led government, potentially influencing other regional countries.
A UN conference on Afghanistan is expected to address the issue of recognizing and engaging with the Taliban.
Afghanistan's decline in Transparency International's corruption rankings highlights ongoing challenges for the Taliban government in gaining legitimacy.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on January 30 formally accepted the credentials of the Taliban-appointed ambassador, becoming the first head of state to do so.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin clarified that the move did not mean Beijing officially recognized the Taliban government.

“Diplomatic recognition of the Afghan government will come naturally as the concerns of various parties are effectively addressed,” he said.

The Taliban, however, celebrated the move as a major diplomatic victory.

"China understands what the rest of the world needs to understand," chief Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said, urging other countries to expand bilateral relations with his government.

Why It's Important: China’s move is a boost to the Taliban-led government, which has not been recognized by any country since the extremist group seized power in 2021.

Beijing’s expanding diplomatic ties with the Taliban government could prompt other countries in the region, including Iran and Russia, to follow suit.

Ibraheem Bahiss, an Afghanistan expert at the International Crisis Group, said Beijing’s decision suggested that the Taliban was making headway in its strategy to gain official recognition from regional countries.

Countries in the region are growing “more and more skeptical about the Western consensus that the Taliban should stay confined to pariah status on the world stage,” he wrote.

Najib Azad, an exiled former Afghan government official, said that without full diplomatic recognition from all five permanent United Nations Security Council members, Beijing’s move was meaningless.

“Until that time, it is only a PR opportunity for the Taliban to claim success,” he told Radio Azadi.

What's Next: A planned UN conference on Afghanistan later this month is expected to debate the question of Taliban recognition and engagement with the group.

The hard-line Islamist group faces major hurdles in gaining international recognition and legitimacy.

Many nations have tied recognition to the Taliban establishing an inclusive government, ensuring women’s rights, and breaking ties with extremist groups.

But the Taliban has refused to share power, severely eroded women's freedoms, and maintained links with extremist groups, according to experts.

What To Keep An Eye On

Afghanistan dropped 12 places in Transparency International’s global corruption rankings.

Afghanistan was ranked 162nd out of 180 countries in the 2023 Corruption Perception Index. Last year, the same index ranked it 150th. In 2021, under the Western-backed Afghan government, the country ranked 176th.

Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, attempted to downplay Afghanistan’s significant drop in the rankings.

“The drop in ranking doesn’t mean that corruption has increased in Afghanistan,” he said. “But it is possible that other countries have become more transparent.”

Why It's Important: The ranking is a blow for the Taliban government, which has touted its fight against corruption as one of its major achievements.

But Afghanistan’s declining score suggests that corruption, which was endemic under the previous government, remains pervasive.

By RFE/RL

UK Carbon Price Drops to Record Low, Sparking Clean Energy Investment Concerns

By Irina Slav - Feb 02, 2024

The price of a ton of CO2 in the UK this week fell to a record low, giving rise to concerns about the immediate prospects of investments in alternative energy sources.

Per the Financial Times, the price for a so-called carbon permit, equal to one ton of CO2, fell to some $40 (31.48 pounds) this week due to lower industrial energy consumption and lower demand for heating due to the mild winter. Analysts also attributed the decline to an abundance of available permits.

Yet the UK’s net-zero transition plans require high carbon permit prices to motivate investment in decarbonization efforts, the report noted. Indeed, high carbon permit prices discourage businesses from emitting and compromise their competitiveness, motivating such investments.

With low carbon permit prices, however, that discouragement is not there, even though some might argue that the price drop—and permit availability—actually suggests industrial consumers are emitting less carbon dioxide, which should be good news for the net-zero planners in London.

“We need a strong, stable and predictable carbon price signal to ensure that investment heads in the right direction,” Adam Berman, deputy policy director at trade body Energy UK, told the FT. “A low carbon price sends absolutely the wrong signal about the UK’s commitment to net zero.”

“If we want to electrify transport and heat, and power them with renewables, then it’s going to be very difficult to do that without the higher carbon price to fund and incentivise it,” BNP Paribas analyst James Huckstepp told the FT.

Indeed, carbon pricing has emerged as an important tool in enforcing the transition by simultaneously discouraging businesses from generating CO2 emissions and providing funds that could be invested in alternative energy sources and net-zero technology.

Yet while the governments using carbon pricing to fund the transition have signaled they see this as a free market, they do need the price to keep going one way only—up. A free market precludes such a consistent price trend, giving cause for worry to transition advocates.

U.S. Exports of Steam Coal Reached 5-Year High in 2023

SHH DON'T TELL BIDEN

By Charles Kennedy - Feb 01, 2024

Lower domestic coal consumption and higher demand in Asia pushed U.S. exports of thermal coal in 2023 to the highest level since 2018, Reuters reported on Thursday, quoting data from ship-tracking firm Kpler.

The United States exported last year more than 32.5 million metric tons of thermal – or steam – coal, used primarily in electricity generation, per the data reported by Reuters columnist Gavin Maguire.

In terms of export revenues, the United States hauled in more than $5 billion from thermal coal shipments in 2023, the second-largest revenues since 2017. The highest coal export revenues since 2017 were achieved in 2022—at $5.7 billion, per figures cited by Reuters.

Climate think tank Ember notes that coal use in U.S. power generation sank last year to the lowest in the 21^st century.

India continued to be the top destination for U.S. thermal coal exports in 2023.

Per Energy Information Administration data for 2022, India accounted for 19% of U.S. coal exports, followed by the Netherlands, whose import hubs are the entry point to Europe, and by Japan, Brazil, and South Korea.

As domestic consumption of U.S. coal is set to drop, the EIA expects in its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) exports to account for a larger share of total U.S. coal consumption.

Exports are expected to make up 19% of total coal demand in the U.S. in 2024 and 21% in 2025, up from a share of 14% in 2019, due to falling domestic demand, especially from the electric power sector.

“The pickup in exports reflects more demand for U.S. coal in foreign markets, especially in Asia where coal consumption was on track to hit record levels in 2023,” the EIA said in an analysis earlier this week.

This increase in demand for U.S. coal is primarily for thermal coal in Europe and Asia, where U.S. coal exporters have grabbed a small share of the growing market. Demand for U.S. coal increased following the embargoes of Russia’s coal in several markets. Demand for U.S. metallurgical coal, used primarily in steelmaking, has remained steady in foreign markets given its high quality for blast furnace coking, the EIA said.

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment