KTFA:

Henig:  After falling by more than two dollars a barrel, oil prices are rising again

Baghdad / NINA / - Oil prices regained their strength today, Monday, after falling by more than two dollars a barrel in the previous session, with optimism about the reopening of China and the recovery of oil demand, which overshadowed fears of a global recession.

Brent crude futures rose 77 cents, or 0.97 %, to 79.81 dollars a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate crude oil recorded $75.01 a barrel, up 72 %.   LINK

Clare:  The Democrat reveals the scenes of the Kurdish delegation's visits to Baghdad... wholesale agreement

12/20/2022 

Today, Tuesday, the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Wafaa Muhammad Karim, revealed the scenes of the Kurdish delegation's visits to the capital, Baghdad.

 Karim told Al-Furat News that: "The region's repeated visits to Baghdad proved a number of positive things between the two parties, such as Article 140 and determining the region's share in the federal budget."

"It was also agreed to activate the joint forces between the Iraqi army and the Peshmerga on the borders," he added.

Karim continued, "All these understandings took place during the repeated meetings of the delegation of the Kurdistan region to Baghdad, in addition to stopping all legal procedures against oil companies in the Kurdistan region by order of the Sudanese Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia'a, and it is also one of the positive points."   LINK

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Clare:  Parliament intends to hold an extraordinary session to read the 2023 budget

The Finance Committee in the House of Representatives revealed the parliament's intention to hold an extraordinary session of the parliament for the purpose of starting the first and second reading of the budget, in the event that it was sent by the government to the legislative authority, while It indicated that the budget is still present in the corridors of the Ministry of Finance and was not sent to the Council of Ministers for the purpose of passing it.

Committee member Jamal Cougar told (Baghdad Today) that "there are obstacles that delay sending the budget, including the birth of a full government with full powers on October 27, while the law stipulates that the budget be sent on October 15, and accordingly the government was then to conduct business and this is the first reason. As for the reason the second is the arrival of oil prices to approximately 79 or 80 dollars, and this confused the parties that prepare the budget, as they do not know how much the The price they are currently setting in the budget, how much is the total value of it, and how much is the deficit in it.All of them are confusing accounts now.

Cougar added, “A country like Iraq lives on oil, which greatly affects it if prices drop from $100 to a number lower than that, and therefore we in the committee and parliament are waiting for the budget to arrive for the purpose of discussing and passing it, even if we are in the legislative season recess. LINK

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Henig:  Mahmoud Al-Shennawy to / NINA /: The presence of Iran and Turkey in the Amman Conference for Cooperation and Partnership .. may contribute to drawing a new map of relations in the region

Baghdad / NINA / - Editor-in-Chief of the Middle East News Agency and expert in regional affairs, Mahmoud Al-Shennawi, confirmed: The presence of Iran and Turkey as major actors on the Iraqi scene at the Amman Summit for Iraq's neighboring countries sends many important messages.

He told the National Iraqi News Agency / NINA /: The presence of the two countries indicates the possibility of settlements and consensus that could contribute to drawing a new map of relations in the region, in light of the rapid developments on various fronts.

Al-Shennawi added: Any positive results in this field will be positively reflected on regional files directly linked to what is happening in Iraq and some Arab countries, especially with regard to the Iranian nuclear file.

He pointed out: From this standpoint, the major powers will seek to contain positions towards finding a formula of cooperation, turning a blind eye to direct talk or merely waving condemnation of Iranian and Turkish encroachments on Iraqi sovereignty.   LINK

Vietnam News

Henig:  Trade deals: The good, bad and unpredictable

06:00 | 20/12/2022

(VEN) -  Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) provide ample opportunities for trade. However, since many countries are constantly changing their policies with the aim of sustainable growth, businesses need to be more innovative to effectively penetrate these markets.

Positive results

At a recent Ho Chi Minh City-based seminar on exporting to FTA markets, managers, experts, and business people agreed that FTAs have generated many positive results for Vietnamese exports.

Nguyen Thao Hien, Deputy Director of the European-American Market Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), said that since the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) went into effect in August 2020, exports to the European markets have recorded positive results.

Bilateral trade between Vietnam and EU member states has significantly recovered and increased compared to pre-pandemic levels. In the first 10 months of 2022, the import and export turnover of goods between Vietnam and the EU exceeded US$52.5 billion, up 14 percent compared to the same period last year. Exports accounted for US$39.7 billion, up 23.5 percent.

To Thi Tuong Lan, Deputy Secretary General of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), said Vietnam has become the third largest seafood exporter in the world after Norway and China. Its largest export markets are the US, China, and the Republic of Korea (RoK). Meanwhile, Vietnam's seafood exports to the markets of member countries of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) account for nearly 27 percent of its total. By the end of October 2022, the export value to this market has reached nearly US$2.3 billion, an increase of 14 percent compared to 2018 (before the signing of the CPTPP Agreement) and a rise of about 40 percent over the same period in 2021.

Regarding the wood industry, according to Tran Quoc Manh, Chair of the Saigon Trade and Production Development Corporation (SADACO), while the economy faces many challenges, FTAs provide many business opportunities. The CPTPP has greatly aided corporate integration into global supply chains over the past three years, while Vietnam's wood products have made their way into a number of markets, both established and new. Vietnam's wood exports to the US market account for about 60 percent of this commodity’s total export volume.

Catching up with “green sustainable” trend

Despite the great potential for Vietnamese enterprises, many limitations hamper exports and production, especially given increasingly complicated and unpredictable economic forecasts, with risks of recession and high inflation, as well as food and energy crises. Many of Vietnam’s export markets have also been imposed non-tariff trade barriers as they recover from the pandemic and its effects.

Vice President of European Chamber of Commerce (EuroCham) in Vietnam Jean Jacques Bouflet advised businesses to concentrate on creating sustainable production in order to expand their markets. Additionally, in order to effectively utilize the EVFTA, Vietnamese exporters must strengthen their processing capabilities, limit the export of raw materials, and develop their own brands.

Regarding the wood industry, Nguyen Chanh Phuong, Vice Chair of the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA), said the wood industry must adopt and abide by environmental regulations to ensure sustainable exports. If good plans are made and followed, Vietnam can meet 60 percent of its raw material demand, and import the remaining 40 percent from the US and Chile, Phuong said. Businesses must ensure environmental standards both locally and globally, he added.

Similarly, Ly Trung Kien, Group Logistics Manager, Nestle Vietnam, said the company has built a sustainable coffee value chain by developing sustainable raw coffee. The NESCAFÉ Plan, a prime example of this initiative, aims to improve the productivity and quality of Vietnamese coffee through sustainable farming methods, raised farmer incomes and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

To effectively take advantage of FTA opportunities, Vietnamese exporters need to develop their own brands, limit raw exports, and improve processing capacity.

Ngoc Thao & Ha Duyen   LINK

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Henig:  Mitsubishi Power to upgrade two gas turbines at Tuas Power

09:45 | 20/12/2022 

(VEN) - Introduction of the latest technologies for two M701F gas turbines will help enhance plant’s output and generating efficiency; Upgrade of two 360MW GTCC power plants can cut CO2 emissions by 16.9 kilo-tonnes annually, with work scheduled for completion in 2023.

Tokyo, November 30, 2022 – Mitsubishi Power, a power solutions brand of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), has received a contract from Tuas Power Generation Pte. Ltd., a major power company in Singapore, for upgrades to two of the four M701F gas turbines (CCP3 and CCP4) in its gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) power generation facility.

 This upgrade is part of Tuas Power’s efforts to achieve energy efficiency improvements and fulfil decarbonization measures in accordance with the Singaporean government’s energy policies. It was adopted following a positive assessment of a proposal from Mitsubishi Power, which drew on the company’s extensive experience in gas turbine technologies. The project is scheduled for completion in 2023.

The Tuas Power facility is located in the southwest region of Singapore. Since 2001, Mitsubishi Power had supplied four gas turbines to Tuas Power, each with a rated output of 360 megawatts (MW).

The upgrade will introduce the latest gas turbine technologies, achieving a heat rate improvement by reducing the volume of cooling air, which allows for reduced carbon emissions of approximately 16.9 kilo-tonnes annually combined for the two CCPs.

Commenting on the conclusion of this contract, Cheng Tin Swan, Vice President (Generation)/Plant Manager) of Tuas Power said, “As one of Singapore’s leading power generation companies, we are dedicated to the country’s decarbonization efforts, and this gas turbine upgrade marks another step in our journey of innovation and sustainability. This upgrade will enable us to generate power while reducing emissions, yet without compromising the energy supply at our power plant. Tuas Power is happy to have a company like Mitsubishi Power that has superior technical expertise to help us achieve high levels of energy efficiency improvements.”

Osamu Ono, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Mitsubishi Power Asia Pacific commented, “Mitsubishi Power has not only supplied Tuas Power with power generation equipment, but also provides support under a long-term service agreement (LTSA) to ensure a high operating rate of its facilities, for stable and efficient power generation. We have developed a long-standing relationship with Tuas Power, and it is an honor to receive this contract, which plays an important role in Singapore’s clean power generation while enhancing the asset value of Tuas Power’s facilities.”

Mitsubishi Power will continue to focus on similar projects covering renovation and performance improvements of existing facilities, along with its services business. Building on this contract from Tuas Power, Mitsubishi Power will remain committed to helping customers achieve stable and efficient power generation, and will continue to contribute to furthering decarbonization and the production of sustainable energy.    PV  LINK