/news

  • Russian Navy Enters Warship-Crowded Red Sea Amid Houthi Attacks - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-28/russian-warships-enter-crowded-red-sea-amid-houthi-attacks


    le destroyer Maréchal Chapochnikov Archives AFP

    Russian warships from the Pacific Fleet have crossed the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and entered the Red Sea, the state-run Tass news agency said, venturing into a maritime region plagued by Houthi attacks and crowded with naval vessels.

    The detachment included the missile cruiser Varyag and frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, Tass reported Thursday, citing the Russian Pacific Fleet’s press service, which said the ships were carrying out “assigned tasks within the framework of the long-range sea campaign.” The ultimate destination of the ships was unclear from the report, as was the reason Russia sent vessels to the area.
    […]
    Earlier this month, Iran, Russia and China held joint naval exercises in the Indian Ocean, according to Russia’s Defense Ministry. Both the Varyag and Marshal Shaposhnikov took part in the drills, which Russia said were meant to practice “safety in maritime economic activities,” including liberating ships hijacked by pirates.

    Russia has also sought a naval base on the Red Sea in Sudan, though a civil conflict in that country may put back those plans.

  • Ukraine’s Drones Threaten Russian Oil Industry With Refinery Strikes - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-20/ukraine-s-drones-threaten-russian-oil-industry-with-refinery-strikes

    • Attacks on refineries have both symbolic and strategic goals
    • Kyiv plans to send ever-increasing swarm of drones into Russia

    Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion has entered a new phase, pitting homegrown drone technology against a 2,000 kilometer (1,200 mile) swathe of largely Soviet-era oil facilities.

    At least nine major refineries have been successfully attacked this year, currently taking offline 11% of the country’s total capacity by some estimates. As the conflict at the front lines has shifted in Moscow’s favor, the drone campaign is becoming a key plank of Ukraine’s defense — both in its symbolism and its strategic aims.

    It gives Kyiv the ability to reach deep into Russian territory and strike an industry that’s crucial to the Kremlin’s war effort, providing both supplies of fuel to its armed forces and a flow of petrodollars into its coffers.

    Russia is a gas station with an army, and we intend on destroying that gas station,” Francisco Serra-Martins, co-founder and chief executive officer of drone manufacturer Terminal Autonomy, said in an interview. “We are going to focus on where it hits the hardest, and that’s financial resources.

    Even as the drone campaign becomes a success story for Ukraine’s military — badly needed after a series of Russian gains on the battlefield — it is a potential wild card for world markets and Kyiv’s Western allies. International oil prices have risen steadily in recent days amid growing fears that the attacks, which have largely inflicted attritional damage so far, could one day take out a major export facility.

    It was only six weeks ago that the government in Kyiv established the Unmanned Systems Forces, a specialized unit focused on drones. By that point, Ukraine’s armed forces had already used the technology to great effect, destroying a number vessels in Russia’s Black Sea fleet and damaging an oil facility on the Baltic Sea.

  • Israel Economy Slumps From Hamas War With Far Worse Drop Than Forecast - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-19/israel-economy-slumps-from-war-with-far-worse-drop-than-forecast

    Israel’s economy suffered one of its worst-ever slumps, after the Hamas war paralyzed businesses, forced people to evacuate their homes and caused the military to call up hundreds of thousands of reservists.

    Gross domestic product shrank an annualized 19.4% in the final three months of last year, in seasonally-adjusted terms, according to preliminary figures released on Monday. That was worse than every estimate in a Bloomberg survey of analysts, whose median forecast was for a decline of 10.5%.

    The shekel weakened slightly on the news and was trading 0.4% down at 3.62 per dollar at 3:53 p.m. in Tel Aviv, heading for its first drop in four days. Stocks initially pared advances.

    “The release highlights the degree to which the Israeli economy has been affected by the conflict, particularly on the private activity side,” Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists Tadas Gedminas and Kevin Daly said in a report.

    Though the war broke the economy’s momentum toward the end of 2023, GDP still expanded 2% in the full year, matching the projection by the central bank’s research department. The Bank of Israel’s growth estimate for 2024 is the same at 2%, while the Finance Ministry sees it at 1.6%.

    The assessment is the first official tally of the war’s toll on GDP and captures the extent of the disruption that tore through the $520 billion economy in the aftermath of Hamas’s attacks on Oct. 7. Alongside the call-up of reservists that depleted roughly 8% of the workforce, it led to restrictions comparable to shutdowns imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic, causing a sudden crash in manufacturing, jolting consumption and briefly emptying schools, offices and construction sites.

  • NATO Races to Send Ukraine 1 Million Drones - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2024-02-16/nato-races-to-send-ukraine-1-million-drones

    After the EU delayed its goal of sending Ukraine 1 million shells, NATO allies are setting their sights on drones to help Kyiv fend off Russia. Latvia, which is leading a coalition of nine allies, said nations would aim to provide 1 million drones by Feb. 24 next year.

    La guerre des drones fait rage. Un de ces jours, la Chine va dire zut, et va cesser ses livraisons à tous les belligérants.

  • US Sanctions Halt Delivery of New Vessels to Russian LNG Plant - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-06/us-sanctions-halt-delivery-of-new-vessels-to-russian-lng-plant


    A resource base for the Arctic LNG 2 project, in the Gydan Peninsula, Russia.
    Photographer: Natalia Kolesnikova/Getty Images

    • MOL says efforts to charter or sell ice-breakers face curbs
    • Operator Novatek PJSC already forced to delay maiden voyage

    The delivery of specialized ships to a new Russian liquefied natural gas facility is being upended by US sanctions, according to Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd., threatening exports.

    The Japanese shipping line can no longer charter the three ice-breaker LNG ships to the Arctic LNG 2 project due to US restrictions, and efforts to sell them could be challenging, President Takeshi Hashimoto said in an interview.

    The start of the plant, a key venture for Russia, has been hit by US measures as Washington penalizes Moscow for the war in Ukraine. Operator Novatek PJSC had planned to use the vessels to pick up fuel from the site, and without them, it will be challenging to operate at the intended capacity. Novatek has already delayed the facility’s maiden voyage, and is struggling to find buyers.

    “Our contractual obligation is that if we cannot provide the service to Arctic 2, we have to sell our vessel to Arctic 2,” Hashimoto said in an interview in Goa, India, on Tuesday. However, “there is a sanction that says we should not do that deal with Arctic. So it’s a bit complicated.”

    MOL, as the firm is known, is working with the US and Japanese governments to find a solution, Hashimoto said. The first of the three ice-breaker LNG vessels will finish construction later this year.

    Meanwhile, overseas partners in Arctic LNG 2, including Japan’s Mitsui & Co. and France’s TotalEnergies SE, have declared force majeure on their participation

  • Houthi Attacks in Red Sea: Chinese Ships Get Insurance Discounts - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-06/chinese-ships-get-cheaper-insurance-to-navigate-houthi-menaced-red-sea

    • Country’s vessels paying 0.35% of hull value for transits
    • Houthis say they are attacking ships with Israel, US, UK links

    Chinese-owned merchant ships are getting hefty discounts on their insurance when sailing through the Red Sea, another sign of how Houthi attacks in the area are punishing the commercial interests of vessels with ties to the west.

    The militants began going after Israeli-linked vessels back in mid-November, before widening their targets to include US and UK ships last month when the two nations bombed Yemen in effort to quell the attacks. The incidents have led to a multi-tiered insurance market in which underwriters differentiate between the carriers they cover.

    While the overall picture is mixed, some Chinese-linked vessels are having to pay as little as 0.35% of their hull and machinery value to obtain insurance for transit, according to people involved in the market. Most ships are paying somewhere between 0.5% and 0.75% — although that can vary significantly, they said.

    The discounts would translate into savings of $150,000 and $400,000 for a transit of a vessel with a hull-and-machinery value of $100 million.

    It means the Chinese carriers are gaining another edge in addition to being able to use a short cut between Asia and Europe in relative safety. Hundreds of ships are simply avoiding the area, sailing thousands of miles around Africa instead. Since the attacks mushroomed, there have been no reports of significant damage to Chinese-owned vessels.

    The Houthis say they are acting in solidarity with the Gazans amid Israel’s war with Hamas.

    Shot Up
    Rates for war insurance, a requirement to go through riskier waters, shot up since the Houthis first began their attacks.

    After jumping about tenfold, they stabilized in recent weeks as the nature of the risks to shipping in the region becomes clearer, and western military forces work to degrade the Houthis’ capability.

    “The market is reflecting the lower risk profile faced by Chinese- and Hong Kong-connected vessels, as shown in the increased Asian-flagged and connected tonnage transiting the region,” said Munro Anderson, head of operations at marine war risk and insurance specialist Vessel Protect. “That said, despite a declaration of safe passage by the Houthis, there are no guarantees that incidents of miscalculation can be avoided.”

    Though Chinese ships are seeing discounts compared with most of the market, some vessels with ties to the the US, UK and Israel are having to pay more for cover.

    Certain underwriters are still looking to exclude coverage for those vessels, but that it is still possible for them to get all the insurance they require, the people involved in the market said.

    The fact that some vessels with links to the US and UK continue to sail through the region is proof that they are able to get cover, the people said.

    Some ships are continuing to advertise that they aren’t connected with Israel, the US or UK.

    At least 27 vessels had filled out their destination on digital ship-tracking systems with comments reflecting Chinese ownership, crew or both.

    The Houthis told the Russian newspaper Izvestia last month that Chinese and Russian ships would be safe from attack — although that doesn’t extend to the cargoes that the vessels transport.

  • Germany to Accelerate Offshore Wind by Removing Environmental Impact Assessments - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-01/germany-to-sacrifice-nature-in-bid-to-speed-up-offshore-wind


    Wind turbines off the coast of Helgoland, Germany.
    Photographer: Christian Charisus/AFP/Getty Images

    • Draft legislation aims to remove environmental impact checks
    • Measure still requires review by other ministries, parliament

    Germany wants to accelerate the expansion of offshore wind energy by removing environmental impact assessments that sometimes delay projects.

    Unless neighboring states are significantly affected, such checks should in most cases no longer be required for the approval and operation of turbines at sea, according to a draft law from the economy ministry seen by Bloomberg.

    While the government is under pressure to accelerate offshore wind expansion, the plan is likely to spark outrage from conservationists. Some in the wind industry also expressed reservations.

    Europe’s largest economy and its biggest polluter — which phased out nuclear power last year — aims to achieve 80% green power production by 2030. That’s up from 50% now, meaning offshore deployment needs to more than triple to 30 gigawatts. By 2045, when it aims to be climate neutral, Germany wants to have 70 gigawatts in offshore capacity.

    As the country similarly struggles to expand its grid, the economy ministry’s draft law also includes speedier approvals for offshore connections and power lines. In addition, it seeks to implement provisions of the European Union’s renewable energy directive, which asks member states to cut a lot of red tape.

    The document says that in most cases, a separate inspection of impacts on wildlife and protected species during the construction phase is no longer needed. Most environmental checks should be done by the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency, the authority charged with designating offshore wind areas, which critics could see as a conflict of interest.

    In a snub to environmentalists, Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party coalition last month also decided to cut funds set aside for marine nature conservation and fishing — proceeds from last year’s record offshore wind auctions — to help plug the nation’s budget hole.

    Other aims of the early draft proposal include declaring the production of hydrogen at sea in the “overriding public interest.” That would help speed approvals for electrolyzers near offshore wind farms, part of the nation’s far-reaching plans to push the green gas. A recent industry study said hydrogen production could become significant — mainly in the North Sea.

    #accélération #ENR

  • Embracer Group Cancels ‘Deus Ex’ Video Game, Lays Off Workers - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-29/embracer-group-cancels-deus-ex-video-game

    The Swedish gaming company Embracer Group AB is canceling a video game in the beloved Deus Ex series after two years of development and will lay off a number of employees as part of an ongoing initiative to cut costs, according to people familiar with the moves.

    #jeux_vidéo #jeu_vidéo #business #embracer_group #eidos_montréal #ressources_humaines #licenciements #jeu_vidéo_deus_ex

  • Tankers Face Million-Dollar Detour Around Cape of Good Hope
    https://gcaptain.com/tankers-face-million-dollar-detour-around-cape-of-good-hope

    Rerouting tankers around the Cape of Good Hope due to Red Sea attacks can add nearly a million dollars per voyage while also doubling transit time, according to LSEG Shipping Research.

    A recent report by LSEG Shipping Research, a division of the London Stock Exchange Group, revealed that rerouting an Aframax tanker from Asia to NW Europe, via the Cape of Good Hope, causes an incremental cost of about $932,905 USD per voyage and extends the transit time from 16 to 32 days. The additional expenses are largely due to the increase in fuel costs.

    Consequently, the total costs for an Aframax tanker increases by 110%, and for a larger container vessel, it rises by 35% for a voyage between Asia and NW Europe.

    Aframax tankers, which can carry both refined products and crude oil, range between 80,000 and 120,000 deadweight tons and make up a large portion of the global tanker fleet.

    Houthi attacks on commercial vessels have also resulted in a considerable reduction in transits through the Suez Canal. According to LSEG Shipping Research, average monthly transits from June to November 2023 were around 1914, which reduced to 1672 in December, indicating a 12.6% drop. By Jan. 22, the transits were down to 947, marking a significant 32.6% decline.

    Moreover, daily containership traffic in the Red Sea has seen a nearly 60% drop since mid-December. The larger container vessels seem to have been the most affected, with over 80% decline in transits, LSEG’s report showed.

    • More Ships Flag No Link With Israel as Red Sea Turmoil Continues - Bloomberg
      https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-17/more-ships-flag-no-link-with-israel-as-red-sea-turmoil-continues

      Cargo ships are broadcasting that they are not connected with Israel in an effort to avoid Houthi attacks in the Red Sea area.

      At least 21 vessels were signaling that they have no ties with the country, or sending similar messages, in ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg on Wednesday. The majority of these ships were in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden areas.
      […]
      The messages appear as the ships’ signaled destination and are not uniform. Examples include:

      Ship name        Signal
      PACIFIC MERIT         NO LINK ISRAELI
      SM OSPREY        NO RELATION TO ISRAEL
      PING HAI        CNCW_NO LINK ISRAEL
      MSXT ATHENA        VSL NO CONT ISRAEL
      VORAS        INDIA NOCON W ISRAEL
      LADA        NOTHING WITH ISRAEL

      The Lucky Alisa, a 75,000-ton bulk carrier, opted for a different approach as it passed through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the Red Sea’s southern end on Tuesday, signaling that all crew onboard are from China. Other ships have previously signaled similar messages.

  • Microsoft Cancels Big New Blizzard Game After Six Years of Development - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-25/microsoft-cancels-big-new-blizzard-game-after-six-years-of-development

    Video-game maker Blizzard Entertainment canceled one of its biggest projects on Thursday as part of a reorganization under new owner Microsoft Corp. that led to mass layoffs of 1,900 people, or 8% of the gaming division’s total staff. The cancelation of the game, codenamed Odyssey, left Blizzard employees reeling as some lost their jobs and others were left wondering about the future of the studio.

    #jeux_vidéo #jeu_vidéo #business #activision_blizzard #microsoft #acquisition #rachat #ressources_humaines #licenciements #annulation #jeu_vidéo_odyssey #moteur_de_jeu #unreal_engine

  • Russia’s Novatek Halts Baltic Fuel-Making Plant After Fire - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-21/novatek-s-ust-luga-terminal-is-on-fire-leningrad-governor-says

    • Ust-Luga gas-condensate plant isn’t operating, Novatek says
    • Ukraine media say an attack was carried out by Kiev forces

    Russia’s Novatek PJSC has halted fuels production at a plant at the Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga following a fire.

    The blaze was the result of “external influence,” Novatek said based on preliminary information, without elaborating.

    • Oust-Louga est le terminal de Nord Stream 2.

      Ust-Luga - Wikipedia
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ust-Luga


      (carte de février 2021)

      In October 2021, Gazprom and RusGazDobycha announced they would build a plant to process ethane-containing natural gas and a large-scale liquefied natural gas (LNG) production plant, Baltic LNG, with a capacity of 13 million tons of LNG per year.[5][6] High-ethane gas from the Tambeyskoye gas field and the Achimov and Valanginian deposits of the Nadym-Pur-Taz region will supply the plant.

    • la carte provient de cet article (02/2021) québécois sur la géopolitique du GNL et des gazoducs…

      L’avenir du projet de Gazoduc GNL Énergie Saguenay se joue à Berlin | L’aut’journal
      https://lautjournal.info/20210211/lavenir-du-projet-de-gazoduc-gnl-energie-saguenay-se-joue-berlin

      Des environnementalistes ont amplement démontré la nocivité du projet de Gazoduc GNL au Saguenay. Des économistes ont établi noir sur blanc que le projet était économiquement non viable et déficitaire pour Hydro-Québec. Malgré tout, le projet risque d’aller de l’avant, parce qu’il s’inscrit dans des enjeux géostratégiques qui dépassent le Québec.

      Bien que ses promoteurs se gardent de l’évoquer, le Gazoduc GNL Énergie Saguenay fait partie de la stratégie américaine pour remplacer en Europe l’approvisionnement en gaz naturel russe par du gaz de schiste américain. Et tout se joue autour du projet Nord Stream II.

      Ce gazoduc de 1 200 kilomètres de long sur fonds marin reliant la Russie à l’Allemagne doit acheminer 55 milliards de mètres cubes de gaz par an en Europe. Il doit être exploité par le géant russe Gazprom, mais il est cofinancé par cinq groupes européens pour un coût total de 9,5 milliards d’euros. Il devait initialement être terminé fin 2019. Aujourd’hui, complétée à 94%, sa construction a été interrompue par la menace de sanctions extraterritoriales américaines. Par exemple, le groupe norvégien DNV GL, qui devait certifier la conformité du tuyau, a cédé devant les pressions américaines. Et sans certification, les assureurs ne suivront pas.

      Dans son livre The Room Where It Happened (Simon and Schuster), John Bolton, le conseiller à la Sécurité nationale dans l’administration Trump, raconte à de nombreuses reprises l’importance qu’accordait Donald Trump à l’interruption de ce projet et l’ampleur des pressions exercées par le président américain sur les dirigeants européens et plus particulièrement Mme Merkel, les menaçant même, si le projet n’était pas abandonné, de sortir de l’OTAN ! « Pourquoi payer pour la défense de l’Allemagne, alors que celle-ci ne consacre même pas 2% de son budget aux dépenses militaires et va envoyer des milliards d’euros à Poutine en échange de son gaz ? »

      Démocrates et Républicains ayant fait cause commune au Congrès pour l’adoption de sanctions aux entreprises impliquées dans la construction de cet oléoduc, il est prévisible que Joe Biden brandira les mêmes menaces.

    • Russia’s Key Oil-Export Route Faces Baltic Drone Attack Threat - Bloomberg
      https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-22/baltic-drone-attacks-puts-russia-s-key-oil-export-route-at-risk


      Novatek site near Ust-Luga, Russia.
      Photographer: Google Maps/Google Maps

      • Attack shuts Novatek plant close to major oil-export terminals
      • Russia has few alternatives if attacks disrupt crude exports

      A new front opened in Russia’s war on Ukraine that highlights the vulnerability of oil exports from the nation’s western ports, after reports of drone attacks against facilities on the Baltic coast.

      Last week, the first ever Ukrainian drone reached Russia’s Leningrad region, some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the border. That aircraft was downed over the privately-owned Petersburg Oil Terminal without causing damage, according to Russian authorities.

      A second drone attack on Sunday, which an official with knowledge of the matter said was organized by Ukraine’s secret services, was more disruptive. It caused a fire that shut down a Novatek PJSC gas-condensate plant in port of Ust-Luga that supplied fuel to the Russian army, according to the official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

      The facility was also close to some of Russia’s most important oil-export terminals. As the war in Ukraine once again enters a phase of attrition targeting energy infrastructure, these attacks are worrying oil-market watchers.

      “Regular attacks or heavier drones may disrupt Baltic port operations and cause reductions of export volumes,” said Sergey Vakulenko, an industry veteran who spent ten years of his 25-year career as an executive at a Russian oil producer. If that happened, “Russia would not have many viable alternatives.”

      Keeping Russia’s oil exports steady is crucial for the Kremlin, which receives some 30% of total budget revenues from the nation’s energy industry. The flow of petrodollars is helping to finance the war in Ukraine as it nears its third year, while also funding domestic spending in the run-up to presidential elections in March.

      A serious disruption to Baltic exports would also be felt around the world. Russia is a top-three global oil producer and the largest supplier to China last year. The crude market is already on heightened alert after attacks on shipping in the Rea Sea, and despite its support for Ukraine the West has long been reluctant to see Russian oil taken off the global market because of the impact it would have on prices.

      “A halt in Baltic exports would be a major shock,” said Viktor Kurilov, senior oil markets analyst at consultant Rystad Energy A/S.

      Two major Baltic oil terminals run by state-owned Transneft PJSC — Ust-Luga and Primorsk — shipped around 1.5 million barrels a day, more than 40% of the Russia’s total seaborne crude exports on average from January to November last year, according to Bloomberg calculations based on the industry data. In addition, some cargoes of Kazakh crude are also loaded at Ust-Luga.

      The facilities load more than 75% of Urals, Russia’s main crude-export blend that is shipped to dozens of nations, according to data from intelligence firm Kpler.

      In the event of an attack, it would be next to impossible for the nation’s producers to redirect flows of this size to any other port, according to analysts.

      There are export terminals in the Barents Sea, but they are “accessible by rail only and have limited capacity,” said Vakulenk?, who is now a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Berlin. “The route to China and Pacific ports is full, so not a single barrel can be diverted there.”

      The Black Sea port of Novorossiysk could accept an extra 300,000 barrels a day, not enough to cover for Ust-Luga flows, estimated Viktor Katona, Kpler’s lead crude analyst. In addition, Novorossiysk is even more vulnerable to air drones attacks from Ukrainian territory and there is also a threat from marine drones, Vakulenko said.

      Crude exports were briefly halted on Sunday after the drone attack on the Novatek facility, but resumed on Monday morning, according to vessel-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Right now the risk of a full halt in Baltic shipments seems minimal, said Rystad’s Kurilov.

      To counter further attacks, Russia has put its key infrastructure in the Baltic Leningrad region on “high-alert mode,” according to the regional authorities.

      “Security units and law enforcement agencies received orders to destroy unmanned aerial vehicles if they are detected in territories,” adjacent to the regional strategic infrastructure, the authorities said in a Telegram statement late on Sunday.

    • Comment l’Ukraine a créé des trous dans les défenses russes pour frapper le très précieux terminal gazier d’Oust-Louga - Geo.fr
      https://www.geo.fr/geopolitique/russie-comment-ukraine-cree-trous-dans-defenses-antiaeriennes-pour-frapper-preci

      En se jouant intelligemment des défenses antiaériennes russes, l’Ukraine multiplie les frappes profondément en territoire russe. Et réussit quelques très gros coups, comme celui sur le terminal gazier du port d’Oust-Louga ou l’usine d’armement de Toula.

      Le temps passe, les cibles visées et frappées par l’Ukraine s’éloignent en territoire russe, et leur importance dans la machine de guerre du Kremlin ne cesse croît. Ainsi, samedi 20 janvier et ainsi que l’a rapporté TF1, un terminal gazier du port d’Oust-Louga, sur la mer Baltique, à quelques encablures de Saint-Pétersbourg mais à près de 900 kilomètres de la frontière ukrainienne, était frappé par une ravageuse attaque de drones.

      Un peu plus tard, l’attaque était revendiquée par le renseignement militaire de Kiev, mené par le très en vue Kyrylo Boudanov qui, récemment interviewé par le Monde ou le Financial Times, promettait notamment que ce type d’opération n’était pas près de cesser.

      Des dégâts bien plus importants que prévu
      Cette frappe sur les installations de Novatek fait suite à une première attaque essuyée quelques jours plus tôt par Saint-Pétersbourg – une ville hautement symbolique, puisque c’est celle où Vladimir Poutine a ses racines politiques.

      Malgré les images d’impressionnants incendies diffusées sur les réseaux sociaux, les dégâts infligés au complexe ont été d’abord été difficiles à évaluer. Mais selon Reuters, les installations portuaires ont lourdement souffert : elles pourraient nécessiter plusieurs semaines, voire mois, avant d’être à nouveau opérationnelles, selon des experts moscovites interrogés par l’agence.

      Selon les autorités ukrainiennes, et ainsi que l’a rapporté la BBC, les usines d’Oust-Louga raffinaient du pétrole pour les troupes russes en guerre sur son territoire. C’est en outre de ce port que partent nombre de tankers allant abreuver, malgré les sanctions, les pays d’Asie qui continuent d’acheter à vil prix le brut de l’Oural, ou en l’occurrence un sous-produit nommé naphta, l’une des briques essentielles de la pétrochimie.

      Oust-Louga et les installations de Novatek contribuent ainsi à alimenter les caisses de l’économie de guerre russe – la Chine est devenue le premier client de la Russie en 2023, comme l’a expliqué CNN.

      Les défenses antiaériennes russes, grandes absentes
      Comme l’ont rapporté le Kyiv Post ou Defence Blog, à cette attaque du port d’Oust-Louga s’est ajoutée quelques heures plus tard celle d’une usine d’armement située à Toula, à environ 170 kilomètres au sud de Moscou. De manière ironique, voire piquante, le renseignement ukrainien assure que cette unité produisait ou réparait pour la Russie certains éléments de sa défense antiaérienne, notamment les fameux systèmes Pantsir.

      Et c’est précisément là que le bât blesse, et qu’il blesse mortellement pour les installations russes. Ainsi que l’explique Business Insider, à la suite de l’Institute for the Study of War dans un point de situation daté du 21 janvier, ces défenses antiaériennes semblent étrangement inefficaces voire inopérantes face à la multiplication de ces attaques à longue distance. Celles-ci qui pourraient être menées avec les drones produits de manière domestique par la très créative industrie de l’armement ukrainienne, et dont certains sont désormais dotés de réacteurs et d’une portée dépassant les 1 000 kilomètres.

      « Les forces russes qui utilisent des systèmes à courte portée comme les Pantsir pourraient ne pas pouvoir couvrir toutes les cibles potentielles de l’Oblast de Leningrad sans apporter de nouvelles batteries dans la zone, et la poursuite de ces frappes ukrainiennes dans la profondeur pourrait accroître la pression sur l’ensemble des défenses antiaériennes russes », est-il écrit par les analystes du centre de réflexion basé à Washington.

      Selon un rapport de Newsweek, dont la source est une chaîne Telegram pro-russe nommée VChK-OGPU, c’est d’autant plus vrai que Vladimir Poutine et le Kremlin auraient retiré certaines batteries de la zone de Saint-Pétersbourg / Leningrad pour les poster près de la résidence du président russe, à Valdaï.

      La stratégie de Kiev est donc des plus malines, et présente un double avantage. Elle pousse la Russie à se découvrir, donc à créer des « trous » dans sa couverture aérienne, donc à ouvrir un accès à des cibles qui seraient, avec des défenses efficaces, plus difficilement accessibles.

      Or, comme les frappes du week-end l’ont démontré, ces cibles désormais accessibles peuvent avoir un intérêt stratégique important, qu’elles touchent directement la production militaire du Kremlin, ou qu’elle le heurte là où cela pourrait faire de plus en plus mal dans les prochains mois, au portefeuille.

    • Le port russe d’Ust-Luga continue d’exporter du pétrole brut et du carburant alors que le terminal de Novatek est fermé -Le 23 janvier 2024 à 12:40 | Zonebourse
      https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/matiere-premiere/WTI-2355639/actualite/Le-port-russe-d-Ust-Luga-continue-d-exporter-du-petrole-brut-et-du-carbu

      Le port d’Ust-Luga, sur la mer Baltique, exportait du pétrole brut et du carburant mardi, à l’exception du terminal de Novatek, qui est resté fermé après avoir été endommagé par un incendie, selon les données de LSEG et des sources industrielles.
      Novatek a déclaré dimanche qu’elle avait été contrainte de suspendre certaines opérations dans l’immense terminal d’exportation de carburant de la mer Baltique et des « processus technologiques » dans son complexe de production de carburant en raison d’un incendie, déclenché par ce que les médias ukrainiens ont qualifié d’attaque de drone.

      Les analystes estiment qu’il faudra des semaines pour relancer les opérations à grande échelle dans le complexe et le terminal.

      Le port géant d’Ust-Luga, situé dans le golfe de Finlande à environ 170 km à l’ouest de Saint-Pétersbourg, expédie un large éventail de marchandises, dont des produits pétroliers et gaziers, vers les marchés internationaux.

      Ses installations comprennent un terminal pour les exportations de pétrole brut et trois terminaux pour le traitement des cargaisons de carburant, y compris le terminal de Novatek.

      Selon les données du LSEG, 5,2 millions de tonnes de naphta ont été expédiées vers l’Asie en 2023 à partir du port d’Ust-Luga, dont 2,8 millions de tonnes à partir du terminal de Novatek.

      Selon les données de suivi des navires de LSEG, deux pétroliers, Adebomi et Bay Global, sont actuellement en cours de chargement au terminal d’exportation de brut.

      Le naphta et le fioul sont chargés sur les pétroliers Clearocean Apollon Clyde Noble au terminal pétrolier d’Ust-Luga, situé à proximité.

      Un autre terminal, appelé Portenergo, accueille les pétroliers Joyce (essence) et Alcor (gaz de pétrole liquéfié).

      Le Minerva Julie, qui devait charger du carburant au terminal Novatek au cours du week-end, est actuellement à l’arrêt au large.

      Le complexe reçoit du condensat de gaz, un type de pétrole léger, pour le traitement de quelque 7 millions de tonnes métriques par an provenant de l’usine Purovsky de Novatek en Sibérie occidentale pour la production ultérieure de produits pétroliers, tels que le naphta, le carburéacteur et le gasoil.

      Novatek produit principalement du naphta pour l’Asie, notamment la Chine, Singapour, Taïwan et la Malaisie, ainsi que du kérosène pour Turkish Airlines, qui est livré à Istanbul.

  • Red Sea Attacks : US, UK, Israel Ships Face Insurance Exclusions - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-16/insurers-seek-to-exclude-us-uk-ships-from-red-sea-cover

    • War risk cover excluded amid spiraling risks in Red Sea
    • Two commodity carriers hit by missiles in space of 24 hours

    Some ship insurers are starting to avoid covering US and UK merchant ships against war risks when they navigate the southern Red Sea, another sign of blowback since the two nations’ airstrikes on Yemen last week.

    Houthi militants have stepped up attacks on commercial ships in the past few days, making good on a threat to respond to airstrikes that the US and UK carried out on Friday. They’ve struck two commodity carriers with missiles since Monday, although both were able to continue their voyages.

    As a result, underwriters are seeking exclusions for vessels with links to the US, UK and Israel when issuing cover for trips through the area, according to Marcus Baker, global head of marine and cargo at Marsh. It essentially means they won’t provide insurance.

    “Underwriters are adding clauses saying no US, UK or Israeli involvement,” he said. “Just about everybody is putting something like that in, and many include the words ‘ownership’ or ‘interest’.”

    It’s the latest development showing the fragile security situation in the southern Red Sea, where western naval forces have warned that it’s unsafe for merchant shipping to pass.


    Zografia’s transit through the Red Sea, including the time its transponder was switched off.

    On Tuesday, the Greek-owned commodity carrier Zografia was hit by a missile while sailing in the south of the waterway. A day earlier, a US-owned bulk freighter called the Gibraltar Eagle was struck.

    Swaths of the world’s top owners are pausing voyages in the area, although many are continuing to do so.

    Yemen’s Houthis said that US and UK ships were legitimate targets for attack, after the two nations launched their barrage of airstrikes.

    British oil major Shell Plc halted tanker transits through the region, according to the Wall Street Journal. Japanese shipping giant Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd., with a fleet of about 800 vessels, also halted transits, a spokesperson said Tuesday. Nikkei reported on Wednesday that two other Japanese shippers, Nippon Yusen KK and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., are also suspending all routes going through the area.

    The insurance exclusions run the risk of creating problems because of their breadth.

    While ownership is a relatively straightforward term, “interest” can be interpreted more widely, Marsh’s Baker said. It could span more tangential factors like charterers or previous port visits.

  • Peace… Peacekeepers….

    Israel, US Weigh Options for Gaza Strip’s Future, Including Peacekeepers - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-31/us-and-israel-weigh-peacekeepers-for-the-gaza-strip-after-hamas

    #Multinational force could include American, UK, French troops Another option would put Gaza under United Nations oversight

    De plus, il ne fait aucun doute que les “multinationaux” seraient tous des bi-nationaux.

    […] if Israeli forces succeed in ousting Hamas, people familiar with the matter said.

  • Sony’s Bungie Game Unit Cut Jobs as ‘Destiny 2’ Popularity Waned - Bloomberg-
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-31/sony-s-bungie-game-unit-cut-jobs-as-destiny-2-popularity-waned

    Bungie’s decision to cut an estimated 100 jobs from its staff of about 1,200 followed dire management warnings earlier this month of a sharp drop in the popularity of its flagship video game Destiny 2.

    Just two weeks ago, executives at the Sony-owned game developer told employees that revenue was running 45% below projections for the year, according to people who attended the meeting.

    #jeux_vidéo #jeu_vidéo #business #finance #bungie #sony #playstation #ressources_humaines #licenciements #naughty_dog #media_molecule #jim_ryan #pete_parsons

  • Epic Games Is Cutting About 900 Jobs, or 16% of Staff - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-28/epic-games-is-cutting-about-900-jobs-or-16-of-staff

    Epic Games Inc., the maker of the popular Fortnite video game, is laying off 870 employees as it seeks to rein in costs.

    “For a while now, we’ve been spending way more money than we earn,” Chief Executive Officer Tim Sweeney wrote in a memo to employees seen by Bloomberg News. “I had long been optimistic that we could power through this transition without layoffs, but in retrospect I see this was unrealistic.”

    The job cuts will affect about 16% of the workforce, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named disclosing information that’s not yet public. Epic didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.

    Fortnite maker Epic Games to cut nearly 900 jobs, 16% of workforce
    https://www.axios.com/2023/09/28/fortnite-epic-900-cuts

    What they’re saying: Sweeney blamed the cuts on unrealistic growth expectations at the privately held company.

    "For a while now, we’ve been spending way more money than we earn, investing in the next evolution of Epic and growing Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators.
    “I had long been optimistic that we could power through this transition without layoffs, but in retrospect I see that this was unrealistic.”

    Epic Games Lays Off Over 800 Employees - Game Informer
    https://www.gameinformer.com/2023/09/28/epic-games-lays-off-over-800-employees

    Epic Games has announced it is laying off roughly 16 percent of its workforce, resulting in around 830 employees losing their jobs.

    Layoffs at Epic - Epic Games
    https://www.epicgames.com/site/en-US/news/layoffs-at-epic

    As we shared earlier, we are laying off around 16% of Epic employees. We’re divesting Bandcamp and spinning off most of SuperAwesome.

    #jeu_vidéo #jeux_vidéo #business #ressources_humaines #licenciements #tim_sweeney #moteur_de_jeu #jeu_vidéo_fortnite

  • Macron Is Pushing Europe Into $900 Billion Fight With China - Bloomberg
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-26/macron-is-pushing-europe-into-a-900-billion-fight-with-china

    The European Union’s new, tougher approach to China is being shaped by French concerns that Beijing’s trade practices have started to pose a critical threat to core industries.

    The government in Paris has taken a key role in driving the policy shift, according to people familiar with its thinking, calculating that inaction now would put the bloc’s economy on a path to long-term damage.

  • Réforme des retraites : l’inflexibilité d’Emmanuel Macron inquiète ses propres troupes
    https://www.lemonde.fr/politique/article/2023/03/25/emmanuel-macron-de-plus-en-plus-isole_6166930_823448.html

    La détermination du chef de l’Etat à « tenir », malgré la contestation, suscite des interrogations chez plusieurs députés de la majorité. Beaucoup s’alarment d’un exercice du pouvoir jugé trop solitaire, qui tarde à prendre la mesure de la crise.

    (...) Heure après heure, l’Elysée, Matignon, ministres et députés cherchent la sortie de l’impasse. En phosphorant sur l’état d’esprit d’Emmanuel Macron, un président de la République concentré mais aussi distant, que certains de ses premiers compagnons décrivent dans une « solitude affective », un homme « isolé par la fonction ». Un homme totalement mystérieux sur ses intentions. Derrière cette impression de temporisation, est-il acculé ? Beaucoup pensent que la clé pour débloquer la situation se jouera dans la relation très compliquée entre le chef de l’Etat et Laurent Berger, secrétaire général de la CFDT.

    https://justpaste.it/csihm

    • Mais pas que : apparemment, les grands argentiers du capitalisme financiarisé sont en train de faire défection. Macron vient de perdre le socle qui constituait sa seule légitimité : celle que lui conférait son statut de banquier.

      “We are in a dead-end, with no clear way out,” said Christelle Craplet, head of BVA Opinion, a French pollster. “This is a tense situation in which there is no majority to govern and no majority to topple the government either.”

      As the opposing sides dig in, the stage is set for extended strikes in some key sectors and the specter of prolonged and violent demonstrations — even King Charles III was forced to postpone a planned visit to France. The turmoil risks making Macron a lame-duck president, forcing him to drop new business-friendly initiatives after his earlier policies helped make France Europe’s top destination for foreign investment and arguably the biggest beneficiary of Brexit, providing another base for financial institutions away from the UK’s political vicissitudes.

      https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-03-25/strikes-arson-and-protests-what-s-going-on-in-france#xj4y7vzkg

      Bon après, on n’a pas affaire à des philanthropes non plus. Mais c’est plaisant de voir ce joli petit monde se tirer dans les pattes.

    • Qu’est-ce qu’il est comique cet article du monde à parler de toute cette Cour inquiète autour de leur petit roitelet... On voit bien que, même pour les journalistes, la séparation des pouvoirs n’est qu’une vue de l’esprit dans ce pays et que personne ne s’en émeut. Ce qui compte ce sont les états d’âme du chef et l’attente de la fumée blanche annonçant ses grandes décisions.

    • Crise sociale : apaiser sans reculer, le paradoxe d’Emmanuel Macron
      https://www.lemonde.fr/politique/article/2023/03/27/crise-sociale-renouer-le-dialogue-en-restant-inflexible-le-paradoxe-d-emmanu

      Alexis Kohler, bras droit d’Emmanuel Macron, a appelé Laurent Berger en fin de semaine dernière, tout comme plusieurs ministres et députés. Sans résultat tangible. Vendredi, Emmanuel Macron a certes invité les syndicats à venir discuter des carrières et de l’usure professionnelle – « des sujets qui ne sont pas déliés des retraites », traduit un conseiller du Palais. Petite inflexion du ton présidentiel. « Un jour, il me met une gifle, l’autre jour, une caresse », rit jaune auprès du Monde Laurent Berger, qui attend toujours « un acte sur les retraites ». « On entre dans une violence inacceptable pour tous les démocrates. On nous a vendu du pragmatisme, c’est le moment de se parler. Il faut remettre l’ouvrage sur le métier », prie le syndicaliste, qui juge, dans la revue Le Grand Continent, « absurde de risquer de faire sombrer la France dans le chaos pour si peu ».

      [...] [Borne] fixe comme « objectif » de ne plus recourir au 49.3, sauf pour les textes budgétaires.

      j’aime bien le « pour si peu » de Berger et le « budgétaire » de Borne