Mining company Rio Tinto PLC plans to create another, larger, plant to process iron ore for subsequent steel smelting, operating on raw biomass instead of coking coal.
The decision was made after the success of the first pilot project implemented in Germany, writes MarketWatch. The project has been running for the past 18 months in conjunction with Finland’s Metso Outotec and the University of Nottingham.
“The results of the first test phase are very promising,” said Rio Tinto Chief Commercial Officer Alf Barrios.
The location of the new plant has not yet been selected.
The steel industry accounts for 8 percent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, MarketWatch noted. Creating yellow ore processing plants using biomass instead of coal would help Rio Tinto’s plans to reduce emissions.
Switzerland on Wednesday approved the eighth package of sanctions against Russia, which includes the introduction of a “ceiling” on Russian oil prices.
“The Swiss Federal Council adopted another set of sanctions against Russia on November 23. The council approved the measures adopted by the European Union as part of the eighth sanctions package,” the document published on the Federal Council’s website reads.
“The sanctions include a legal basis for imposing a ‘ceiling’ on prices of Russian oil and oil products, as well as restrictions on iron and steel goods, aerospace products and goods of economic importance to Russia,” the statement stressed.
It is specified that the sanctions will take effect at 18:00 Wednesday local time (19:00 KSC).
The new measures also include a ban on the provision of IT, engineering, architectural and legal services to the Russian authorities and companies. In addition, a ban is introduced for citizens of Switzerland to occupy managerial positions in some companies owned by Russia.
The document notes that on October 12, the Swiss authorities added 30 more individuals and entities to the sanctions list for Russia.
The EU adopted the eighth package of sanctions with similar measures on October 6 in response to Russia’s escalation of military aggression against Ukraine.
Mass power outages have begun in Moldova due to damage to the Ukrainian energy system, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Andrei Spynu said.
“Today we have a repeat of the situation of November 15. After the damage to the Ukrainian energy system in the last hour, we have mass power outages across the country. Moldelectrica is working to restore electricity connections,” Spynu wrote Wednesday on social media.
Water supplies were suspended Wednesday throughout Kiev due to Russian shelling, the capital’s mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said.
“Due to the shelling, water supplies have been suspended throughout Kiev. Specialists “Kievvodokanal” are working to restore it as quickly as possible, “- he wrote in his Telegram channel.
At the same time, the mayor urged residents of Kiev to stock up on water just in case.
“Specialists are doing everything possible to return water to the homes of residents of Kiev. They are also working to resume power supply in the capital,” Klitschko added.
The Pivdenno-Ukrainian and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants have been disconnected from the energy system due to missile attacks on the power facilities by the Russian occupants.
“Pivdenno-Ukrainian NPP – Emergency shutdown of power units,” MP Alexei Goncharenko said in his Telegram channel on Wednesday.
“Stopping the units. There is no electricity, water, possibly heat,” wrote the mayor of Netishin, a satellite town of the Khmelnytsky NPP, Alexander Suprunyuk in his Facebook.
As reported, the NEC “Ukrenergo” confirmed the missiles hit a number of power facilities on Wednesday and the emergency blackouts across Ukraine.
Stock indices of the largest Western European countries are changing weakly and multidirectionally at the beginning of the session on Wednesday.
Investors are assessing the latest data on business activity in the eurozone and waiting for the publication of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s November meeting minutes, which will be held on Wednesday evening.
At the last meeting the Federal Reserve increased the rate by 75 basis points and hinted at the possibility to reduce the rate rise at the next meetings. As experts expect, the protocol will show that the Fed leaders reached a consensus on the need to slow down the rate hike, writes Bloomberg. At the same time, however, there is no consensus among them as to what interest rate cap will lead to the beginning of the decline in economic activity and inflation.
The composite index of the largest companies in the region Stoxx Europe 600 by 10:40 a.m. decreased by 0.09% and was 435.94 points.
Germany’s DAX added 0.01%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.03% and Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.4%. Meanwhile, Italy’s FTSE MIB and Spain’s IBEX 35 are down 0.6% and 0.2%, respectively.
The composite purchasing managers index (PMI) in the euro area in November rose to 47.8 points from 47.3 points in October, showed preliminary data from S & P Global, which calculates the indicator.
The value of the indicator below 50 points indicates a decrease in business activity in the sector. The index in the euro area remains below that mark for the fifth month in a row.
Germany’s composite PMI rose to 46.4 points this month from 45.1 points in October, the highest since August. Nevertheless its value indicates a decline in business activity for the third month in a row.
In France, the composite PMI in November fell to 48.8 points from 50.2 points a month earlier, according to preliminary data. The decline in business activity in the country was recorded for the first time since March 2021.
Share prices of Swiss bank Credit Suisse Group AG fell by 5.2%. The bank published the forecast for the fourth quarter of the current year, according to which it expects the pre-tax loss of $1.6 billion.
Papers of Johnson Matthey, a British chemical company, are falling by 3.1%. The company reported a decline in net profit in the first fiscal year.
Shares of Prosus NV of the Netherlands, which invests in tech companies, rise in price by 1.4%. The company grew revenues in the first fiscal half-year by 9% to $16.5 billion.
The value of United Utilities Group PLC, a British utilities provider, is up 0.1%. The company’s pre-tax profit doubled in the first fiscal year.
German carmaker Volkswagen AG dropped 1.9%. The company reached an agreement with the IG Metall union, which includes 125,000 VW employees, to raise their salaries and pay bonuses of 3,000 euros.
