Good morning, friends. We’re wrapping up this week with another brisk read that includes major data center investment news from the UAE and a debt watch from Morocco. But first, an update on the US’s upcoming export-oriented LNG project…

THE BIG LOGISTICS STORY- Trump greenlights Venture Global’s LNG exports: The Trump administration has granted Venture Global LNG — the US’ second-largest LNG exporter — conditional approval to export natural gas from the firm’s planned CP2 project in Louisiana. The conditional approval will also allow the firm to export to countries that have no freetrade agreements with the US.

More details: Once operational, the facility — located in Louisiana’s Cameron Parish — will be able to export up to 3.96 bn cubic feet per day of LNG. It will produce 20 mn tons of LNG annually and potentially cost USD 28 bn to build. Venture Global is yet to make a final investment decision on the project.

It hasn’t been easy: Former US President Joe Biden held up approval for the project in January 2024 after environmental groups argued that the facility would prolong the transition to clean energy. Venture Global pushed back against this, arguing that it will export enough gas to replace 33 coal-fired power plants and prevent a release of nearly 140 mn tons of emissions per year.

The company is also facing rising operational costs in the US, and it has recentlyrequested a revision of supply and purchase agreements from trading partners in response to rising LNG operational costs in the US.

The story grabbed a lot of ink in int’l press: Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | The New York Times

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- India eyes an industrial base in Egypt: An Indian delegation composed of government officials and representatives from the Indian Industry Confederation will soon visit Egypt to discuss the next steps for a possible Indian industrial zone project in the SCZone, according to a statement. The news came during Egypt’s Investment Minister Hassan El Khatib’s ongoing visit to India to discuss trade cooperation.

THE BIGGER PICTURE- Egypt and India want to nearly triple trade volumes to USD 12 bn over the next five years from USD 4.2 bn in 2024, according to a readout of a meeting between El Khatib and Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. Egypt wants to attract Indian investments into a handful of key sectors, such as chemicals, automotive manufacturing, pharma, and textiles, and the government is prepared to offer Indian investors the necessary support and incentives, El Khatib said.

#2- Egyptian Oil Minister Karim Badawi discussed the terms of leasing the Energos Power floating regasification unit with German officials in Berlin yesterday, according to a statement. The discussions followed initial negotiations in Cairo in late February. The vessel is currently docked at Germany’s Mukran Port.

REMEMBER- The Oil Ministry earlier this month announced that it is exploring the possibility of leasing a German LNG regasification vessel, and said a delegation would iron out the final terms of the agreement by the end of March. The vessel is one of a handful of regasification units the government had been in talks to lease in preparation for high energy demand in the summer months.

#3- Brazilian crude in, Russian crude out for Turkey? Turkey’s largest oil refiner Tupras has ordered a shipment of Brazilian medium sweet crude — its first since 2007 — suggesting a departure from its dependence on Russia’s arctic crude that has similar properties, Bloomberg reports. The shipment — sourced from Brazil’s majority state-owned Petrobras — will include 950k barrels of Itapu crude and is scheduled for delivery in early April.

In numbers: Russian crude is projected to account for only 19% of Turkey’s crude imports in March — a sharp decline compared to 2024 figures that saw Turkey source half of its supplies from Russia.

Background: Tupras ceased all imports of Russia’s flagship Urals grade crude late last month, Reuters reported at the time. The refiner attributed the decision to the US move to heighten sanctions on Russian oil producers Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas in January.

ALSO- Russian crude lands in Chinese port despite sanctions: Nearly 2 mn barrels of Russian crude shipped from three small US-sanctioned tankers to the Panama-flagged VLCC Daban were unloaded last week at China’s privately operated Qingdao Haiye Group’s Qingdao port, Reuters reports, citing two unnamed people familiar with the matter. The Daban is managed by Hong Kong-based Confident Apex Ltd, according to Kpler and LSEG data.

The how: The Daban onboarded the oil in the first ten days of February from three US-sanctioned Aframax-sized vessels — the Vladimir Arseenyeeb, the Captain Kostichev, and the Victor Konetsky. The transfers took place in Russia’s Nakhoda Bay, Reuters reports, citing Kpler. “Unlike the international waters near Malaysia and Singapore, Nakhoda Bay is not known as a regular site for ship-to-ship transfers of oil, making Daban's movements more conspicuous,” a trader told Reuters.

REFRESHER- The US Treasury Department rolled out new sanctions in January targeting dozens of oil traders and more than 180 tankers that have moved Russian oil over the past year, as well as Russian oil producers Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices went up this morning in response to a weakening greenback and a robust demand outlook from the US, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures surged by USD 0.43 to USD 71.21 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose by USD 0.38 to USD 67.54 a barrel by 11.30 GMT.

#2- Dubai’s sour crude benchmark surged against Brent crude futures this week, with the Brent-Dubai Exchange of Futures for Swaps flipping to a discount of USD 0.02 per barrel on Wednesday — its first drop below parity since November 2023, Reuters reports, citing LSEG data. The discount later widened to USD 0.14, trade sources said, reflecting robust Middle East sour crude demand and weaker European refining activity.

Brent’s slump against Dubai highlights subdued European refinery runs during maintenance season and soft margins in Northwest Europe, Onyx Capital’s Harry Tchilligurian noted. Meanwhile, heightened bidding for Middle East grades in the Dubai trading window bolstered the regional benchmark.

This might not last long: Though recent price tightness suggests medium sour crude is now the “center of the strength in the global crude oil market” currently, Opec’s plans to hike production starting next month will likely weigh on prices, SEB analyst Bjarne Schieldrop said.

#3- Fujairah’s marine fuel sales volume slumped to a record low of 554k cbm in February amid an uncertain outlook facing the shipping industry, with low-sulfur marine fuel dipping 7.2% m-o-m to around 412 cbm and the high-sulfur version falling 2% to 143 cbm, Al Arabiya reports, citing data from Fujairah Oil Industry Zone (FOIZ). The slowdown in Fujairah is“reflection of the broader uncertainty in global trade…as shipping firms are optimizing their operations more cautiously to navigate volatile conditions,” Container xChange CEO Christian Roeloffs told Reuters.

#4- Baltic index snaps winning streak: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — was down 13 points to 1,637 on Wednesday. The capesize dipped 41 points to 2,673, while the panamax index declined 28 points to 1,377. Only the smaller supramax index was up, rising 22 points to 999 — its highest in four months.

PSA-

Hapag-Lloyd to suspend low water surcharge: Shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd will suspend its low water surcharge for all cargo moving to and through the port of Montreal starting 28 March 2025, according to a statement. The suspension will allow the firm to fully load Montreal services such as AT1, AT2, and the Mediterranean Canada Service.

***YOU’RE READING EnterpriseAM Logistics, the essential MENA publication for senior execs who care about the industry that connects producers and retailers to global markets. We’re out Monday through Thursday by 9:15am in Cairo and Riyadh and 11:15am in the UAE.

EnterpriseAM Logistics is available without charge thanks to the generous support of our friends at Hassan Allam Utilities, Transmar, and AK-Ships.

Were you forwarded this email? Tap or click here to get your own copy of Enterprise Logistics.

Want to send us a story idea, request coverage, ask for a correction, or otherwise get in touch? Reach out to us on logistics@enterprisemea.com.

DID YOU KNOW that we also cover Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the MENAclimate industry ?
***

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host the Gulf Ship Finance Forum on Thursday, 10 April in Dubai. The forum will host shipping and finance executives from around the region and the world to host presentations, interviews, and panel discussions on ownership, management, chartering, legal, and trading in shipping.

The UAE will host the CargoIS Forum on Monday, 14 April in Dubai. The event will discuss industry insights and strategies from leading logistics players, including Emirates SkyCargo and Lufthansa Cargo.

The UAE will host the IATA World Cargo Symposium from Tuesday, 15 April to Thursday, 17 April in Dubai. The event will host sessions, specialized streams, workshops, and summits related to technology, security, customs, cargo operations, and sustainability for over 1.4k industry leaders.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.

Tags: