West African farmers could be hardest hit from a global fertilizer supply squeeze sparked by the war in the Middle East, experts warned. The agriculture-reliant region imports the majority of its fertilizer, much of which came from the Gulf before Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz. The timing of the ...
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The world’s new energy security ageThe world’s new energy security age
The View From Dr. Sarah Kapnick and Derek Chollet Energy prices are volatile as the Iran conflict has disrupted flows through the Strait of Hormuz. Shipping insurance premiums are surging and tanker routes are shifting. Major countries such as India are having to ration oil and gas, which, until recently, ...
Iran allows China ship to transit Strait of HormuzIran allows China ship to transit Strait of Hormuz
The first Chinese-owned cargo vessel successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz since Iran began letting a select number of ships navigate the waterway, Caixin reported. In the last three weeks, Tehran has let some non-Western ships pass through a “safe” corridor in the strait that bypasses traditional shipping lanes, ...
Volkswagen inks Iron Dome deal in defense pivotVolkswagen inks Iron Dome deal in defense pivot
Volkswagen is pivoting from cars to military tech at one of its factories, a reflection of the challenges facing Germany’s auto sector. The company plans to use an embattled German car plant to manufacture components for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, the Financial Times reported. It’s the highest-profile example ...
Jet fuel price spike means higher airfaresJet fuel price spike means higher airfares
A spike in jet fuel prices stemming from the Iran war is passing through to consumers, resulting in more expensive airfares for summer travel, analysts said. The CEO of United Airlines, the world’s largest by capacity, warned Tuesday that ticket prices may increase by 20%. Global airlines are making contingency ...
Meta ramps up AI adoption pushMeta ramps up AI adoption push
Meta appointed its chief technology officer to oversee efforts to drive AI adoption across its workforce, The Wall Street Journal reported, as the company looks to remove organizational layers and speed up work. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is also building a personalized AI agent to help him do his job. Use ...
NASA aims to build $20B lunar baseNASA aims to build $20B lunar base
NASA is abandoning efforts to build a space station orbiting the Moon, and will instead put $20 billion toward a lunar base, officials announced Tuesday. The ambitious plan calls for dozens of launches in the next decade, with crews eventually exploring the lunar south pole. “The goal is not flags ...
Prediction markets eye self-regulationPrediction markets eye self-regulation
Under pressure from federal and state lawmakers, Kalshi promised to ratchet up scrutiny of athletes and politicians who trade on their own contests. “All markets have bad actors,” a lawyer for the prediction market operator wrote. “We believe that staying ahead of bad actors means developing new technology and policies.” ...
Solar is Southeast Asia’s cheapest buffer against future shocksSolar is Southeast Asia’s cheapest buffer against future shocks
Southeast Asian countries’ planned expansion of gas power could increase the cost of generating electricity to $109 billion by 2030 based on future price projections — more than double the cost of generating the same amount of electricity with solar, according to analysis by energy think tank Ember. Gas generation ...
US grid grows more vulnerable to cyberattacksUS grid grows more vulnerable to cyberattacks
The US electricity grid is increasingly vulnerable to cyberattacks, a senior US energy official told Semafor. As the grid expands to keep up with the AI race, “you have a growing surface of attack on which our adversaries can target us,” said Alexander Fitzsimmons, the Acting Undersecretary of Energy. “The ...