News

NTPC, India's largest thermal power producer, has announced a Rs 16.86 lakh crore ($176.69 bln) investment plan to reach 149 GW of installed power generation capacity by 2032 and 244 GW by 2037, spanning thermal, renewable, hydro, storage, mining and nuclear projects, Chairman and Managing Director Gurdeep Singh said on Aug 27.

South Korea has released its first draft of region-differentiated industrial electricity pricing, splitting the country into eleven tariff zones. Under the proposal, AI data center developers building in the south, home to abundant nuclear and renewable power capacity, can qualify for industrial-rate cuts of up to 18 won/kWh ($0.013/t), KEPCO laid out during a public hearing on Aug 26.

Tangshan Port's revenue reached 2.987 billion yuan in the first half of 2026, up 15.18% year on year, while net profit attributable to shareholders rose 13.97% to 1.008 billion yuan, according to its interim report. In the second quarter alone, net profit hit 538 million yuan, jumping 14.2% quarter on quarter, driven by coal and steel throughput growth of 53% and 24% respectively from the prior quarter.

As of midday close on Aug 28, coke futures for January delivery (J2701) rose 2.53%, coking coal futures (JM2701) gained 2.83%, and iron ore futures (I2701) edged up 0.77%.

China Baoli Technologies Holdings said its Mongolian iron ore project has entered construction after equipment procurement and customs clearance, with the first iron ore concentrate expected shortly. Its Mongolian coal project has completed camp infrastructure and begun hiring but still needs additional capital before full production. The Hong Kong-listed company is discussing offtake and long-term sales partnerships, with some distributors starting due diligence, and is evaluating African iron ore opportunities to diversify its resource base.

Spain has proposed new rules requiring data centers to source at least 80% of electricity from renewables, local media reported. The requirement would remain in place until renewables account for more than 90% of Spain's electricity mix, after which the threshold could be revised. The framework would apply to facilities of at least 1 MW and introduce grid access, water efficiency and EU data sovereignty requirements, the govt said.

China's state planner and transport ministry have issued a plan to improve the national logistics network, focusing on strengthening multimodal transport and collection-distribution systems. The plan calls for upgrading major freight hubs, accelerating rail-water intermodal facilities at coastal ports, and building standardized container yards and dedicated flat cars for multimodal transport. It also promotes coordination with waterway networks, encourages direct river-sea shipping on specific routes, and supports construction of railway branch lines, highway links, inland waterway connections and belt-conveyor corridors, with upgrades for existing rail spurs and congested port access roads.

China's total social logistics value reached 214.5 trillion yuan in the first seven months of 2025, up 5% year on year, data from the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing showed on Aug 28. Industrial product logistics grew 5.3% year on year during January-July, with traditional mining-related demand remaining weak while manufacturing served as the core growth engine. Manufacturing-related logistics demand rose 5.5% year on year in July, 1 percentage point higher than the overall industrial product logistics growth, with equipment manufacturing logistics demand up 12.3% and high-tech manufacturing-related logistics demand climbing 16.9%.

China's state planner said on Tuesday it has held a series of special meetings to accelerate effective investment, including speeding up the disbursement of funds from new policy-based financial instruments and increasing support for private investment projects.Under the "six networks" initiative, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said it is studying a diversified investment and financing model, refining fiscal, financial, investment and pricing support policies by category to accelerate the start of major projects.

China's National Energy Administration and Jordan's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources signed a memorandum of understanding on energy cooperation on Aug 24, during talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Jordan's King Abdullah II in Beijing.The agreement, signed by Wang Hongzhi, head of China's National Energy Administration, and Jordanian Energy Minister Saleh Al-Kharabsheh, covers exchanges and collaboration in energy planning, electricity, renewables and hydrogen, according to the Chinese energy regulator.