Nornickel’s metals digitalization firm, GPF Investments (GPFI), has issued four types of tokens linked to platinum group metals—e.g., platinum, palladium, ruthenium, and iridium—on the Atomyze blockchain platform. This issuance includes 1,255 digital financial assets, equivalent to approximately RUB 2.5 million (US$28,000), with each token representing one gram of metal. The... Read more →
Empresa Pública Nacional Estratégica de Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos (YLB) signed an agreement with Russia-based Uranium One Group to install a pilot plant scalable to semi-industrial production with Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technology in the Uyuni salt flat (Potosí) with a production capacity of 14,000 tons per year. Under the... Read more →
US coal exports increased by 5.7 million short tons (MMst) in the 12 months after EU sanctions on coal from Russia went into full effect in August 2022, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). The increase was driven almost exclusively by a 22% jump in U.S coal exports... Read more →
Nornickel, Russia’s leading metals and mining company, has begun extraction at the Glubokaya (Deep) shaft of the Skalisty (Rocky) mine, reaching depths of 2 kilometers. This move will enable Nornickel to substantially boost extraction of the most valuable and rich ore. To initiate the extraction, the company connected two independent... Read more →
Since the EU imposed sanctions on Russia in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine, there has been a redrawing of the global oil map, a new study by Transport & Environment (T&E;) shows. Instead of cutting demand, Europe has simply replaced imports from Russia with oil from other producing... Read more →
Moscow has opened the second high-tech electric bus depot in the Mitino district in the northwest of Moscow. The new electric bus depot is more than 9.4 hectares in area—enough for the support of up to 300 electric buses. The depot will serve 23 electric bus routes in Northwest Administrative... Read more →
Russia-based Nornickel, the world’s largest producer of palladium and high-grade nickel and a major producer of platinum and copper, presented its eleventh review of the nickel and platinum group metals (PGM) markets based on the fundamental analysis of world economic and industry data. Nickel. In early 2023, nickel has been... Read more →
India’s state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) said that oil output from the Sakhalin-1 project in Russia has returned to a plateau level of 190,000 - 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) from zero. Sakhalin-1 produced an average of 227,000 bpd in 2021. Following the onset of sanctions against Russia... Read more →
SUE Mosgortrans has started testing GAZelle e-City electric minibuses, produced by Russia’s GAZ. (The e-City is based on GAZ’s diesel-powered City minibus.) The electric bus accommodates 16 passengers, 13 of them with seats. The tests of the electric minibus will last until the end of February 2024. Such minibuses are... Read more →
The city of Moscow has signed a contract for 1,000 electric buses from KAMAZ. There are also plans to purchase another 200 electric buses from GAZ Group, said Maksim Liksutov, the Deputy Mayor of Moscow for Transport. The vehicles will come to the capital over the next 2 years. Moscow... Read more →
Polar Lithium, a collaboration between Nornickel and Rosatom’s mining division, has been awarded the exclusive right to develop Kolmozerskoye, Russia’s largest lithium deposit. (Earlier post.) The project, located in the country’s northwest Murmansk Region, will produce 45,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate and hydroxide per year. The Kolmozerskoye deposit is characterized... Read more →
In 2021, Moscow announced that it was planning to bring back river public transport after an absence of 16 years. (Earlier post.) Two electric river vessels—Sinichka and Filka—are currently being tested in Moscow; the vessels have already passed about 7 thousand kilometers along the Moscow River. Since September, the electric... Read more →
At the beginning of 2023, Moscow will announce an auction for the purchase of another 1,000 electric buses. Nearly 500 of these will be added to the SUE Mosgortrans bus fleet and hit the streets of Moscow in 2023 while the rest of the electric buses will be received in... Read more →
Russia-based Nornickel has begun prototyping new nickel- and cobalt-based alloys, which are of high demand in the aviation, space, nuclear, chemical and oil and gas industries. The project is implemented at the company’s Kola Division. Nornickel’s Kola Division in Russia is represented by Kola MMC, a wholly owned key production... Read more →
Russia-based Udokan Copper, the developer of Russia’s largest new copper deposit, outlined scenarios to cut the carbon intensity of copper production up to 75% by 2035, bringing the company closer to its ultimate goal of climate neutrality in the long run. The mine is part of the Udokan Ore Region... Read more →
Moscow is now actively developing its charging infrastructure for electric buses. Currently there are 202 charging structure in the city; Moscow will install another 115 ultra-fast charging stations for electric buses. Ultra-fast charging stations for Moscow electric buses. The electric buses can be fully charged in 6-10 minutes—enough to ride... Read more →
Moscow, which overall has the largest electric bus fleet in Europe (earlier post) has 8 separate bus fleets—all of them consisting of a mixture of e-buses and diesel buses. Now, the Russian capital is deploying its first all-electric bus fleet in the New Moscow district. The new fleet in the... Read more →
As the world contends with a global energy crisis, nuclear power has the potential to play a significant role in helping countries to securely transition to energy systems dominated by renewables, according to a new special report by the IEA. In countries that choose to continue or increase their use... Read more →
The Board of Directors of Renault Group unanimously approved the signing of agreements to sell 100% of Renault Group’s shares in Renault Russia to Moscow City entity and its 67.69% interest in AVTOVAZ to NAMI (the Central Research and Development Automobile and Engine Institute). The closing of these transactions is... Read more →
European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton and European electrolyzer manufacturers last week met in Brussels to discuss how to increase industry’s capacity to produce electrolyzers used to produce clean hydrogen. The Commissioner and 20 industry CEOs signed a Joint Declaration whereby industry committed to a tenfold increase of its... Read more →
Russia-based Nornickel, the world’s largest producer of palladium and high-grade nickel and a major producer of platinum and copper, has entered into a cooperation agreement with the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom (Rosatom). The parties agreed to cooperate in several areas. First, the parties intend to deliver strategic projects... Read more →
by Michael Sivak, Sivak Applied Research Because of the war in Ukraine, many international flights of various airlines are currently affected by the closed airspaces. Specifically, they are forced to take longer routes that avoid these airspaces, increasing the total fuel consumed. Moreover, some of them also need to reduce... Read more →
In the new environment of energy insecurity intensified by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the resulting response from the West, the UK government has released a new British Energy Security Strategy that sets out how Great Britain will accelerate the deployment of wind, new nuclear, solar and hydrogen, while supporting... Read more →
The Renault Group suspended its industrial activities in Russia on 23 March (earlier post). Regarding its stake in AVTOVAZ, Renault Group said that it is assessing the available options, taking into account the current environment, while acting responsibly towards its 45,000 employees in Russia. AVTOVAZ Group is part of the... Read more →
The Board of Directors of Renault Group has decided to suspend Renault Group activities in its manufacturing plant in Moscow as of 23 March. Regarding its stake in AVTOVAZ, Renault Group said that it is assessing the available options, taking into account the current environment, while acting responsibly towards its... Read more →
On Friday, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan signed emergency bipartisan legislation (SB1010/HB1486) to suspend immediately the state of Maryland’s gasoline and diesel tax for 30 days. This action passed both the House and Senate with unanimous support. This emergency legislation applies to the 36.1 cents per gallon tax for gasoline, and... Read more →
In the face of the emerging global energy crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the countervailing barrage of economic sanctions, the International Energy Agency (IEA) is proposing a 10-Point Plan to Cut Oil Use. IEA claims that its plan would lower oil demand by 2.7 million barrels a... Read more →
Sanctioning Russian nickel will slow the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and hinder the decarbonization of Western economies, according to GlobalData. The data and analytics company notes that such actions will simply mean Western countries will be more reliant on Russian oil and gas for longer. According to GlobalData’s Mining... Read more →
Against the background of the Russian attack on Ukraine and the resulting consequences, the Group Board of Management of Volkswagen AG has decided to stop the production of vehicles in Russia until further notice. This decision applies to the Russian production sites in Kaluga and Nizhny Novgorod. Vehicle exports to... Read more →
Ford announced that it is suspending JV operations in Russia, effective immediately, until further notice. In recent years, Ford has significantly wound down its Russian operations, which now focus exclusively on commercial van manufacturing and Russian sales through a minority interest in the Sollers Ford joint venture. As part of... Read more →
A.P. Moller – Maersk is temporarily suspending new Maersk bookings within ocean, air and intercontinental rail to and from Russia, with the exception of foodstuffs, medical and humanitarian supplies (bar dual-use items). The suspension began 1 March and covers all Russian gateway ports. Maersk will announce further details as it... Read more →
ExxonMobil is discontinuing operations at Sakhalin-1, and will make no new investments in Russia. ExxonMobil operates the Sakhalin-1 project on behalf of an international consortium of Japanese, Indian and Russian companies. (Earlier post.) In response to the situation in Ukraine, the company is beginning the process to discontinue operations and... Read more →
Equinor’s Board of Directors has decided to stop new investments into Russia, and to start the process of exiting Equinor’s Russian Joint Ventures. We are all deeply troubled by the invasion of Ukraine, which represents a terrible setback for the world, and we are thinking of all those who are... Read more →
The Board of Shell announced its intention to exit its joint ventures with Gazprom and related entities, including its 27.5% stake in the Sakhalin-II liquefied natural gas facility, its 50% stake in the Salym Petroleum Development and the Gydan energy venture. Shell also intends to end its involvement in the... Read more →
The bp board announced that bp will exit its shareholding in Rosneft, a Russian state-controlled oil and gas company. bp has held a 19.75% shareholding in Rosneft since 2013. Additionally, bp chief executive officer Bernard Looney is resigning from the board of Rosneft with immediate effect. The other Rosneft director... Read more →
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens to increase costs for Europe’s vehicle industry, which is already struggling with record high lithium prices and a shortage of semiconductor chips, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. Prices for nickel, a key battery material, rose to their highest levels since 2011 this week following Russian... Read more →
In 2021, a large share of Europe’s supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) originated in the United States, Qatar, and Russia. Combined, these three countries accounted for almost 70% of Europe’s total LNG imports, according to data by CEDIGAZ, reported by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). The United States... Read more →
Moscow, Russia, currently runs 1000 electric public electric buses on 66 bus routes, giving it the distinction of operating the largest e-bus fleet in Europe and America. This year the Government of Moscow plans to buy 500 additional electric buses. Most of them will be purchased with the funds from... Read more →
Testing of the the first Russian-made articulated electric bus has begun in Moscow. After the test drive, the city plans to purchase such vehicles to service routes with high passenger traffic. The electric bendy bus has space for 135 passengers and a range of 90 kilometers; charging of the battery... Read more →
Moscow has deployed its 1000th electric bus. This electric bus has become the 400th vehicle purchased with the funds from the green bonds. The goal of the project is to show how such collaborations can help to make the city eco-friendlier as well as to draw attention to the environmental... Read more →
The 900th electric bus has hit the streets of Moscow; in November 2020, the city had launched its 500th electric bus (earlier post). The jubilee e-bus decorated with neon lights will operate in the south of the city. The vehicle was assembled at the SVARZ eco-plant by KAMAZ, which was... Read more →
L-Charge, a Russian manufacturer of mobile rapid charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, has raised investment of $1.5 mln. The funds have come from private investors attracted by the ability to charge an electric vehicle with sufficient power for 100 km in just 3-8 minutes using a hydrogen fuel cell or... Read more →
KAMAZ has presented the KAMAZ-6290 hydrogen fuel cell bus at the COMTRANS-2021 international exhibition in Moscow. There is still a lot of work to be done. In 2022, we intend to test a prototype KAMAZ hydrogen fuel cell bus in the streets of Moscow, in the environment of actual operation.... Read more →
Loop Energy, a developer and manufacturer of hydrogen fuel cell-based solutions, is partnering with METTEM-M Ltd., a developer of vehicle control systems and systems integrator, to provide hydrogen electric powertrain solutions to commercial vehicle OEMs across Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and greater Europe. The companies’ first joint... Read more →
Nornickel, the world’s largest producer of palladium and high-grade nickel and a major producer of platinum and copper; Rosatom State Corporation; and the Far Eastern Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Center (FESRC, part of Rosneft Oil Company) have signed an agreement of intent to design and build a dual-fuel diesel-LNG icebreaker... Read more →
The city of Moscow is planning to bring back river public transport after an absence of 16 years. Water transport first appeared in the city in 1923. In 1960s it was in great demand. In 2006 regular water transport on the Moskva River stopped running—only leisure trips remained. 49 bridges... Read more →
The city of Moscow, Russia is halting the purchase of diesel buses for its passenger transport fleet. Starting this year, by the decision of the Mayor of Moscow, we will not buy diesel buses, except for transportation in a special mode. Only electric buses. We will also install about 200... Read more →
As of June 2021, Moscow’s fleet of electric buses has reached 600 vehicles and will expand to 1,000 by the end of the year—more than in any other European city. Most of the battery packs and propulsion equipment for the Russian capital’s electric buses are made by Drive Electro, which... Read more →
In Russia, JSC Rusatom Overseas (a company of ROSATOM); Metalloinvest, a leading manufacturer and supplier of iron ore products and hot briquetted iron (HBI) in the world market, and one of the regional producers of high-quality steel; and Air Liquide signed a memorandum of understanding to study the possibility of... Read more →
Russian Railways, RUSNANO and the Sinara Group signed an agreement to cooperate on the development of mainline locomotives using a power plant based on hydrogen fuel cells together with lithium-ion batteries. Russian Railways will act as a potential customer of locomotives, while the Sinara Group, represented by the Sinara—Transport Machines... Read more →
