Power Up: Fed Roils Oil, Czech Nuclear Deal
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Sept 19 -By Clyde Russell
Asia Commodities and Energy Columnist
Welcome to Power Up! The Federal Reserve cut U.S. interest rates by a larger-than-expected half a percentage point, which heightened investor worries about the health of the world’s largest economy. Oil prices weren’t immune, with Brent crude futures dropping 5 cents to $73.65 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude contracts slipping 28 cents to $70.91. News that the U.S. is seeking to buy up to 6 million barrels of oil to help replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve wasn’t enough to lift the gloom around crude prices. Outside of oil, South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol has stepped in to try and get his country’s deal with the Czech Republic to build two nuclear plants over the line. More on that story below.
South Korea Confident of Czech Nukes
South Korea’s deal to build two nuclear plants in the Czech Republic is facing serious challenges, but President Yoon Suk Yeol is confident the investment will go ahead. Yoon is scheduled to visit the European country from Sept. 19-22 and he told Reuters in written responses to questions ahead of the trip that the obstacles will be overcome and the project’s success is of “paramount importance”.
The Czech Republic in July picked Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) to build two nuclear power units, and possibly more, in its largest-ever investment initiative, with each unit said to cost around $8.65 billion. But the deal hasn’t been smooth sailing, with Westinghouse throwing a spanner in the works by saying KHNP lacks a licensing agreement to export reactors that are based on the U.S. group’s technology. France’s state energy firm EDF has also launched an appeal after it was the loser in the final tender round.
Yoon said Seoul and Washington were working to create an "amicable atmosphere" among businesses in the nuclear energy sector as part of efforts to iron out any differences over intellectual property rights and expedite collaboration. "I believe this effort will help facilitate a smooth resolution to any dispute that might arise between the two sides," he said. "There is no need to worry about the Czech Republic's nuclear power plant construction project."
Essential Reading
China's thermal power generation returned to growth in August for the first time in four months, but it still lagged the increase in overall electricity output as renewables continued to surge.
The current major U.S. expansion in liquefied natural gas exporting terminals and infrastructure will require an additional 400 vessels that can carry the supercooled gas to foreign buyers, according to a presentation at Gastech by Emily McClain, vice president of North America gas markets at research company Rystad Energy.
The Chinese government is pushing back on a U.S. probe of whether China is helping its neighbour Russia dodge a U.S. ban on Russian uranium imports saying Beijing has always opposed "illegal unilateral sanctions".
China’s aggressive push into the nascent clean hydrogen market prompted European electrolyser manufacturers in July to pen a letter warning that the continent’s Green Deal must have ‘Made in Europe’ at its core.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris understands natural gas prices will rise if fracking is banned, industry executives said this week, explaining their confidence that the Democratic nomineewill not ban the production method if she becomes president.
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Editing by Marguerita Choy
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