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Five months later, on Nov. 24, the regulator approved the plan for the Quesqui field in the southern state of Tabasco. Interviews with eight sources with direct knowledge of the matter show Hernandez had been pressured by Lopez Obrador's government and Pemex to approve Quesqui and other plans, or resign. According to these people, at least three other senior officials at the regulator were also pressured by officials in government and at the regulator to help approve the plans. One of the officials who the sources said was pressured, the former technical head, Julio Trejo, resigned shortly before the Quesqui plan was approved. Guerrero also reiterated that the Quesqui field "is a strategic project" as defined by the government.

REUTERS/Blair GableOTTAWA, April 14 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's top aide on Friday refused to say when Trudeau first learned about allegations that China tampered with recent elections, citing security concerns. Canadian authorities have started several investigations into the allegations of interference in Canada's 2019 and 2021 elections, accusations that Beijing denies. Trudeau's chief of staff, Katie Telford, spoke in Ottawa to a parliamentary committee looking into alleged Chinese election interference in the 2019 and 2021 elections, which Trudeau's Liberals won. Telford later said it was "quite possible" that Trudeau was briefed around January 2022 about alleged China interference in the 2019 election. Canadian media outlets have published detailed reports, citing anonymous intelligence sources, alleging schemes run by the Chinese government to interfere in Canada's last two elections.

SummarySummary Companies Plant to supply 1.2-1.4 mln tonnes of ammonia per yearYara attracted by low US gas prices, carbon capture costProduction start up set for 2027-28OSLO, March 31 (Reuters) - Norwegian fertiliser maker Yara (YAR.OL) and Canadian pipeline company Enbridge (ENB.TO) plan to invest up to $2.9 billion to build a low-carbon blue ammonia production plant in Texas, they said on Friday. Blue ammonia, rather than green ammonia derived from renewable energy, refers to ammonia produced from natural gas, with the carbon dioxide (CO2) byproduct captured and stored. The plant will supply 1.2 million to 1.4 million tonnes of low-carbon ammonia per year. High gas prices in Europe have made the case to build in the U.S. stronger, Ankarstrand said. Many similar facilities are in development and demand for low-carbon ammonia looks strong, said Vince Paradis, Enbridge's vice president of business development.

March 28 (Reuters) - Canada's Crescent Point Energy Corp (CPG.TO) said on Tuesday it would acquire Spartan Delta Corp's (SDE.TO) oil and gas assets in Alberta's Montney region for C$1.7 billion ($1.24 billion). Crescent Point shares dipped 0.7% in Toronto, while Spartan stock gained nearly 8%. Crescent Point said it is looking to reduce net debt by about C$1 billion over the next 12 months and may also sell assets. Crescent Point also produces oil in the province of Saskatchewan. Crescent Point raised its production outlook to 160,000 to 166,000 boepd from the earlier forecast of 138,000 to 142,000 boepd.

[1/5] Grain farmer Oleksandr Klepach points at trenches in his field, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Snihurivka, southeast Ukraine, February 20, 2023. Agricultural companies, which plant most of Ukraine's fields, are short 40 billion hryvnia ($1.08 billion) to carry out spring work, the Agrarian Council said. Grains have traditionally dominated Ukraine's fields, but lower-cost and higher-priced oilseeds are gaining popularity during war. Ukraine was the world's fourth-largest corn exporter before Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022 and the biggest sunflower oil exporter. Companies lacking demining certification are charging farmers up to $3,000 per hectare to clear fields, Ukrainian media reported on Tuesday.

It was one of the last still providing Ukrainian citizenship for newborns in the southern city of Kherson which was then under Russian occupation. Early in the occupation, Ukrainian parents faced pressure to accept Russian citizenship for their newborns. "When we asked for diapers, the Russians told us, 'If you come without Russian birth certificates, we will not give you diapers'," said Natalia Lukina, 42. The ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the situation in Kherson during Russian occupation. It is unclear how many babies received Russian citizenship, because Russian officials recorded them and Ukrainian registration workers did not cooperate with them, Klimenko said.

REUTERS/Lisi NiesnerBILOZERKA, Ukraine, March 1 (Reuters) - When Ukraine recaptured Kherson in November, Andrii Povod returned to find his grain farm in ruins. The institute's Baliuk said the war damage could lead to an alarming loss of fertility. ECHOES OF WORLD WAR ONEA working group of soil scientists created by the Ukrainian government estimates it would cost $15 billion to remove all mines and restore Ukraine's soil to its former health. If studies of damage to land during World War One are anything to go by, some areas will never recover. To be sure, World War One lasted four years, and the war in Ukraine only one year so far, but lead remains a key component of many modern munitions, Rintoul-Hynes said.

"America will stand with Ukraine as long as it takes," Yellen, flanked by sandbags at the cabinet ministers' office, told Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. Yellen also announced the transfer of the first $1.25 billion from the latest, $9.9 billion tranche of economic and budget assistance from Washington. The latest funds are part of $45 billion in new military, economic and humanitarian approved by Congress in December as part of broad U.S. budget legislation. Yellen said such economic support is keeping Ukraine's government and critical public services running, schools open and pensions paid, providing a "bedrock of stability" that fuels Ukrainian resistance. 168, where the salaries of teachers, administrators and support staff are reimbursed from U.S. budget support funds.

REUTERS/Lisi NiesnerLUCH, Ukraine, Feb 27 (Reuters) - For a Ukrainian village devastated by war, Cold War bunkers built to withstand a nuclear attack that never happened have proven a lifeline for residents who have spent much of the past year living in them. In April, with their village caught between Russian and Ukrainian forces, Gynzhul, her husband Dmytro and their son moved into a warehouse basement, just before their second-storey apartment was shelled. Ukrainian soldiers pushed the Russians south away from Luch last autumn and by early November had recaptured Kherson city. Gynzhul and the others in her bunker live off humanitarian aid and her 4,000 hryvnia ($109) per month salary from her administrative job in the village. Bunker resident Iryna Sichkar said her son was captured early in the war in Mariupol.

KHERSON, Ukraine, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Vladyslav Antoniuk felt euphoric three months ago when he returned to his home city Kherson, the day Ukrainian troops rolled back in and jubilant residents waved blue and yellow flags in the main square to celebrate. Russian soldiers, who retreated just across the Dnipro River, have not been pushed back further and are pummelling the city daily with artillery. On Wednesday, Russian shells hit a bus stop in the city centre, killing six people and wounding a dozen. He said his administration evacuates about 100 people from the city daily on trains and buses on a voluntary basis. Reporting by Rod Nickel in Kherson, Ukraine Editing by Peter GraffOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Feb 1 (Reuters) - North American pipeline operator TC Energy Corp (TRP.TO) on Wednesday raised its cost estimate more than expected for completing its troubled Coastal GasLink project, sending share prices sharply lower. The company attributed the cost increase to a labor shortage, poor work by contractors and adverse weather. TC is looking to sell C$5 billion worth of assets this year to raise funds to repay debt and pay for projects including Coastal. TC Energy raised its overall 2023 capital expenditure outlook to C$11.5 billion-C$12 billion from C$9.5 billion earlier, partly due to Coastal's higher costs. An impairment will be recognized to TC Energy's equity investment in Coastal in its fourth-quarter results scheduled for Feb. 14, the company said.

One company is injecting liquid clay into California desert to trap moisture and help fruit to grow, while another in Malaysia boosts soil with droppings from fly larvae. Biochar, liquid clay and fly larvae droppings are all in limited commercial production. Some, like liquid clay and biochar add nutrients while also improving the ground's ability to retain water, and require fewer applications than fertilizer. Norway-based Desert Control has spent 18 years and $25 million developing liquid clay to boost soil. In Malaysia, Nutrition Technologies produces "soil conditioner" from frass - the waste and skin of Black Soldier Fly larvae.

[1/4] LNG Canada site construction activities are held, in Kitimat, Canada, September 2022. LNG Canada, in which Japan's Mitsubishi Corp (8058.T) owns a 15% stake, is set to be Canada's first liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal. LNG Canada has previously described this approach as only one of the options it was considering. LNG Canada has full environmental permits from both governments to use natural gas turbines for Phase 2, making it unclear what leverage governments have to force electrification. But buyers may pay more for LNG produced with lower emissions, Klein said, noting that some buyers already purchase carbon offsets for LNG cargoes.

REUTERS/Eva Plevier/File PhotoWINNIPEG, Manitoba, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Netherlands-based Rabobank NA (RABOVR.UL) is aiming to grab 10-15% of the Canadian farm lending market within 15 years, as it aims to shake up a sector dominated by government and domestic banks, its new Canadian agricultural head told Reuters on Wednesday. It took Rabobank a decade before deciding to expand into Canadian farm lending, taking a methodical approach, Lieverse said. Rabobank expects Canadian farm lending to be profitable from the start and plans to announce hiring plans shortly, she said. Rabobank did not release its estimate of the value of the Canadian farm lending market, but government agency Statistics Canada pegged 2021 farm debt at a record-high C$129 billion ($96.1 billion), with chartered banks accounting for 37%. Farm Credit Canada, owned by the Canadian government, is the biggest agricultural lender, controlling a market share of about one-third, Lieverse said.

Companies TC Energy Corp FollowDec 23 (Reuters) - TC Energy Corp (TRP.TO) on Friday said that a U.S. regulator had approved a restart plan for an idled segment of its Keystone oil pipeline to Cushing, Oklahoma, and it looked to restore service after several days of testing and inspections. The 622,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) pipeline was shut on Dec. 7 after it spilled 14,000 barrels of oil in rural Kansas, the biggest U.S. spill in nine years. The shutdown reduced the flow of Canadian crude to Gulf refineries, but it has had little impact on Canadian oil prices, partly because of ample storage in Alberta. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) approved the restart plan, TC said. Frigid weather at the spill site may slow work, TC said.

[1/3] A view of the land repair work underway at site of an oil spill from Keystone Pipeline, located north of Washington, Kansas, U.S December 15, 2022. Erwin Seba/REUTERSCompanies TC Energy Corp FollowDec 21 (Reuters) - The U.S. pipeline regulator launched a review this year of its special permits that waive certain operating requirements for pipelines, following a government report into spills on TC Energy's Keystone oil pipeline, a source familiar with the matter said. The most recent major spill occurred this month in rural Kansas along Keystone, the only U.S. oil pipeline with a special permit to operate at higher pressure. PHMSA commissioned Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a Department of Energy research institution, to review special permits following a 2021 report on Keystone accidents, the source said. The latest Keystone spill raises doubts about whether PHMSA adequately assesses risk in granting special permits, said Don Deaver, a pipeline consultant.

[1/2] Emergency crews work to clean up the largest U.S. crude oil spill in nearly a decade, following the leak at the Keystone pipeline operated by TC Energy in rural Washington County, Kansas, U.S., December 9, 2022. REUTERS/Drone BaseCompanies TC Energy Corp FollowDec 20 (Reuters) - TC Energy Corp (TRP.TO) has submitted its plan to restart the Keystone pipeline to U.S. regulators, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday, nearly two weeks after the line ruptured in the worst oil spill in the United States in nine years. TC Energy did not answer questions about when it hopes to restart the line or what caused the incident. More than 400 people are involved in the cleanup, including TC workers, pipeline regulators, state and local officials and the EPA. "It's pretty straightforward and PHMSA should have enough information," Kuprewicz said, adding that PHMSA could allow TC to restart the segment within the day.

[1/3] Emergency crews work to clean up the largest U.S. crude oil spill in nearly a decade, following the leak at the Keystone pipeline operated by TC Energy in rural Washington County, Kansas, U.S., December 9, 2022. REUTERS/Drone Base/File PhotoDec 14 (Reuters) - Canada's TC Energy Corp (TRP.TO) is resuming operations in a section of its Keystone pipeline a week after a leak of more than 14,000 barrels of oil in rural Kansas triggered the whole pipe's shutdown. "This restart facilitates safe transportation of the energy that customers and North Americans rely on and extends from Hardisty, Alberta, to Wood River/Patoka, Illinois," TC Energy said. Oil sprayed nearby pastures and leaked into Mill Creek before being shut by operator TC Energy. Market players had speculated that TC Energy might first restart the leg of the pipeline that delivers to Patoka, Illinois.

REUTERS/Drone Base/File PhotoDec 14 (Reuters) - One week after Canada's Keystone pipeline spilled more than 14,000 barrels of oil in rural Kansas in the United States, the cause is still unknown, according to regulators. Oil sprayed nearby pastures and leaked into Mill Creek before being shut by operator TC Energy. The timeline for the full restart of the pipeline remained uncertain, and neither a root cause failure analysis nor a restart plan had been submitted, the U.S. The spill occurred in Washington County, Kansas, about 20 miles (32 km) south of a junction in Steele City, Nebraska, where Keystone splits into two. "We don't have a confirmation of a timeline and anticipate an update on restart today," TC said in an email.

Dec 14 (Reuters) - Canada's TC Energy Corp (TRP.TO) said it expects to give an update on the Keystone pipeline restart later on Wednesday, a week after the 622,000 barrel-per-day pipeline was shut after leaking oil into a creek in Kansas. Keystone is a crucial artery shipping Canadian crude south to U.S. refineries and traders have been awaiting news of when it may restart operations. Market players have speculated TC may first restart the leg of the pipeline that delivers to Patoka, Illinois, which did not leak. "We don't have a confirmation of a timeline and anticipate an update on re-start today," TC said in an email. The Mainline moves 3.1 million bpd of Canadian crude to refineries in the U.S. Midwest and eastern Canada.

This week's spill of 14,000 barrels in Kansas is sure to raise alarms over future pipeline development, as U.S. regulators had already increased scrutiny of pipeline construction due to previous Keystone spills in 2017 and 2019. The pipeline suffered few incidents in its early years, but since 2017, the number of spills increased after TC Energy received a special permit from the U.S. "I think a lot of scrutiny is going to be placed on the special permit," said Jane Kleeb, founder of Bold Alliance, an advocacy group that fought Keystone XL. John Stoody, vice-president of government relations at the Liquid Energy Pipeline Association said special permits come with numerous different operating conditions. "If anything there are complaints from industry about how lengthy the special permit process is.

Oil companies are facing faltering prices and Canadian firms are also absorbing an unusually punishing discount for their heavy-grade crude. Net debt represents a company's gross debt minus cash and cash-like assets. It faced an existential threat in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic crushed oil prices. Canadian producers also absorb a $29 per barrel discount due to distance from U.S. refineries and lower heavy oil demand. If oil prices dip below $65, companies may tighten spending but opt to reduce capital budgets before shareholder returns, Bushell said.

Companies TC Energy Corp FollowBENGALURU/WINNIPEG, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Canada's TC Energy on Thursday said it shut its giant Keystone pipeline due to an oil spill into a Kansas creek, and it is unclear how long the line will be closed. The 622,000 barrel-per-day Keystone line is the primary artery shipping heavy Canadian crude from Alberta to refiners in the U.S. Midwest and the Gulf Coast. Keystone shut the line at about 8 p.m. CT on Wednesday (2 a.m. Thursday GMT) after alarms went off and system pressure dropped, the company said in a release. "The system remains shut down as our crews actively respond and work to contain and recover the oil," the release said. Two Keystone shippers said TC had not yet notified them how long the pipeline may be shut down.

"I remember reading a book once called, 'Sacred Cows Make the Best Burgers,'" Poirier said at the company's investor day. Calgary, Alberta-based TC is widely known for its Keystone oil pipeline, a critical artery for moving Canadian oil to U.S. refiners that dominated headlines over the past decade for an expansion that ultimately failed. Keystone could fetch TC C$12.8 billion, said CIBC analyst Robert Catellier in a note. He added that reducing TC's oil exposure would help it reach its emissions-reduction goals. TC's stake in the Millennium natural gas pipeline in New York state is another logical sale candidate and could fetch $1 billion, said Scotiabank analyst Robert Hope.

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