Breaking News, Latest Philippines Headlines, World, Entertainment, Politics, Weather & Video News
by Luis Bravo with Margioni Bermudez in Caracas Agence France-Presse MARACAIBO, Venezuela (AFP) — Cheap gasoline smuggled over the border from Venezuela once flooded eastern Colombia. These days, as desperate Venezuelans run out of fuel, the contraband is moving in the other direction. For the first time Colombian gasoline is cheaper and is being smuggled across the border to fuel vehicles in western Venezuela. “It’s a lifeline,” says Roger, a fruit-and-vegetable vendor in Santa Cruz […]
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canada on Thursday threw its support behind groups fighting to safeguard caribou that are threatened by a recent US approval of oil and gas drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which borders the Yukon. The US Department of the Interior in August approved plans for drilling in the remote Arctic region. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that drilling leases could be auctioned […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany on Wednesday criticised naval exercises in the eastern Mediterranean as “not helpful” in easing tensions between Greece and Turkey, at odds over gas and maritime borders. “What we have to find is a starting point for us to enter once again into political discussions and negotiations,” German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said after talks with her EU counterparts in Berlin. “The manoeuvres that took place today are certainly not helpful,” […]
by Hélène COLLIOPOULOU with Raziye AKKOC in Ankara ATHENS, Greece (AFP) — Greece and its EU allies held war games in the Mediterranean Wednesday while Turkey conducted drills with the US navy nearby, as the row between the two neighbours over gas and maritime borders ratcheted up another notch. The convergence of a growing number of warships on an energy-rich but disputed patch of sea between Cyprus and Crete came as NATO and a host […]
by Gokan Gunes with Raziye Akkoc in Ankara Agence France-Presse ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Turkey’s big push into the Mediterranean featuring controversial gas drilling, tough rhetoric and warships is rooted in a grand vision of a “Blue Homeland” that takes over waters claimed by EU neighbours. Fearful of being denied a fair share of the region’s bountiful natural gas wealth, Turkey sent a research vessel and a small navy armada into seas Greece views as […]
by Patrick GALEY PARIS, France (AFP) — Wind and solar produced a record 10 percent of global electricity in the first half of 2020 as the world’s coal plant fleet ran at less than half its capacity, analysis published Thursday showed. Despite a near-record drop in power demand due to the pandemic, renewables accounted for 1,129 terawatt-hours in January-June, compared with 992 in the first six months of 2019, according to a report by the […]
by Shatha Yaish DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — The oil-rich United Arab Emirates on Saturday announced the startup of its Barakah nuclear power plant, scoring another first for the Arab world. The announcement, coinciding with the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, comes hot on the heels of the UAE’s launch of the Arab world’s first probe to Mars. “UAE first nuclear reactor at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant has achieved first criticality and successfully […]
by Béatrice ROMAN-AMAT Agence France-Presse FESSENHEIM, France (AFP) — France’s oldest nuclear power plant will shut down on Tuesday after four decades in operation, to the delight of environmental activists who have long warned of contamination risks, but stoking worry for the local economy. The Fessenheim plant, opened in 1977 and already three years over its projected 40-year life span, became a target for anti-nuclear campaigners after the catastrophic meltdown at Fukushima in Japan in […]
by Tom BARFIELD Agence France-Presse FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany on Wednesday said it aimed to become the world’s “number one” in green hydrogen technology, betting the fuel produced by renewable energy sources can both reduce carbon emissions and stimulate Europe’s top economy. “For reasons related to our competitiveness but above all to reach our ambitious climate goals”, ministers have agreed to pump nine billion euros ($10.2 billion) of government cash into the technology, Economy […]
by Marlowe HOOD Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Falling fossil fuel demand coupled with mounting risk for investors could slash the value of oil, gas and coal reserves by two thirds, sending shock waves through the global economy, energy analysts warned Thursday. The value of projected profits for the sector could also fall by two thirds, according to a report from Carbon Tracker, a non-profit financial think tank focused on aligning capital markets with […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Energy giant Saudi Aramco on Tuesday reported a 25 percent slump in first-quarter net profits due to low oil prices, saying the coronavirus crisis will dampen demand and full-year earnings. The world’s largest listed firm posted a net profit of 62.5 billion riyals ($16.66 billion) in the three months to March, compared to $22.2 billion a year earlier. The company said the drop in earnings mostly reflected a decline in […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — Total said Tuesday its quarterly profit fell by 99 percent because of dropping oil prices and announced it would slash investments in response to ongoing turmoil in crude markets. The French oil major reported a net profit of $34 million for the first quarter, against $3.1 billion a year earlier. Oil prices suffered a sharp drop in the first quarter due to overproduction and a price war between Saudi Arabia and […]
