Year: 2021

THE natural gas and energy crunch sweeping Asia and Europe has propelled spot rates for liquefied natural gas carriers above $260,000 per day on key routes as traders sought vessels to profit from cargo arbitrages worth over $100m. The Baltic Exchange currently assesses time charter equivalent rates to ship 180,000 cu m of LNG to Tokyo from Gladstone, Australia at $262,215 per day, with LNG-fuelled ships at $201,535. That is up 7% and 11% , respectively, from the last assessment on October 14, data show. Pacific LNG rates are trading…

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A decade of underinvestment in traditional energy supply chains has finally caught up to world economies. Surging demand, tightening inventories and soaring prices are causing energy shortages and blackouts. Coal and natural gas inventories are at dangerously low levels, diesel power generation is switching on, factories are shutting down, and blackouts are already happening in China. The situation has deteriorated materially since “The Myth of OPEC+ Spare Capacity” was published, yet the consensus remains that OPEC+ can tame oil markets at any time by unleashing its abundant spare capacity. In this context,…

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From ageing electric batteries to old engines to rearview mirrors, the auto industry is revving up its recycling efforts as it faces pressure to reduce its colossal carbon footprint. The world’s automakers are investing in facilities to salvage old parts but the industry is also looking to recycle the millions of electric batteries used for the cars of the future. While electric cars are cleaner than their fossil fuel forebears, the raw materials needed for their batteries are extracted from mines in Africa that are often accused of environmental damage…

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