Headlines

** The U.S. Energy Department is loaning $700 million to a Nevada lithium mining operation becoming only the second in the U.S. to get support from the Biden administration.

** Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy outlined proposed legislation for Alaska to capitalize on carbon markets, seeking to diversify state revenues long heavily reliant on proceeds from oil. He will introduce his carbon management bill package during the legislative session that starts this week.

** General Motors wasn’t content with an appeals court decision dismissing its racketeering case against Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, now known as Stellantis, so it’s asking the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in.

** The Wyoming Legislature may consider a proposal to ban foreign companies and citizens of other countries from owning agricultural land in Wyoming. If passed, the bill would prevent any foreign government, business or person from buying agricultural land in Wyoming.

** The Defense Department is officially requiring any new firefighting foam it buys to be made without per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS, toxic chemicals associated with a host of health issues and known to have contaminated the ground water of dozens of military bases.

 

World

** China’s Panjin Haoye Chemical Co Ltd’sentire oil refinery and petrochemical complex was shut down after a huge explosion killed five people and left eight missing on Sunday, Reuters has reported.

** A rupture in an old natural gas pipe has emerged as the most likely cause of Friday’s blast in the Lithuania-Latvia pipeline, the head of its operator said on Saturday. he explosion yielded flames up to 50 meters high, but there was no immediate evidence of an attack.

** The UK drew 115 bids from 76 companies to lease areas of the seabed to look for oil and gas resources, the North Sea Transition Authority said in a statement on Tuesday.

** Turkey freed a vessel that had wedged itself against the banks of the Bosphorus Strait, clearing the vital waterway that connects the Black Sea with global markets.

** Swedish government-owned mine operator LKAB announced the discovery of a major rare earth mineral deposit in the northern city of Kiruna, potentially significantly reducing reliance on China for electric vehicle components.

** EV car makers in Europe are slowing down production because the battery cars have proven too expensive for the middle class and the supply of lithium for their batteries is too uncertain. Production in Europe this year will be 12 million cars, a million less than previous estimates.