 |
|
|
|||||
Crypto mining companies are actively negotiating contracts with Brazilian electricity providers, such as Renova Energia, that would benefit from the South American country’s surplus renewable power without burdening the grid during peak times. Following crypto heavyweight Tether, which announced in July an investment in the South American country, there are at least six negotiations for small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as one for a larger project of up to 400 megawatts (MW), people from six different companies told Reuters. Mining machines that solve complex mathematical problems to back crypto transactions have overloaded grids in multiple countries. However, in Brazil, where crypto mining hardly exists today, they could help address a chronic clean electricity oversupply problem, which has cost energy companies almost $1 billion in the last two years, according to wind and solar industry groups ABEEolica and Absolar. Tether, the world’s largest digital assets company, said it is leveraging its recent acquisition of Adecoagro to tap its renewable energy, such as the electricity coming from sugarcane mills, to power a bitcoin mining operation in Brazil. Renewable energy supplier Renova told Reuters it is making one of the first major investments in the crypto sector, a $200 million mining project for an undisclosed client in the state of Bahia in the northeast of Brazil. The 100-MW venture consists of six data centers that will draw power from a wind farm. “We aim to expand the company and enter new markets,” Renova CEO Sergio Brasil said. “We realized that by providing all the infrastructure (for crypto mining), we were one step ahead of our competitors.” Crypto miners can rapidly scale operations up or down based on energy availability, providing a flexible consumer base for excess energy without straining the grid during peak demand periods. Brazils energy oversupply stems from years of government incentives that spurred a boom in wind and solar investments. But the pace of development has outstripped the expansion of transmission infrastructure, and some plants now waste as much as 70% of the power they generate. There’s tons of potential, John Blount, one of the founders of Enegix, a crypto miner based in Kazakhstan, told Reuters. We will try somehow to elaborate mobile data centers, he added, that would be plugged directly into power plants. Enegix is looking into deals in Brazil’s northeast, the region suffering from the biggest energy surplus, including tapping into solar and wind power in the state of Piaui. Penguin, which is based in Paraguay, one of the world’s biggest crypto hubs, said it is negotiating projects too, but declined to share any details. And China’s Bitmain, one of the largest manufacturers of mining equipment, is also exploring opportunities, according to an executive who asked not to be named. Miners seen as ‘diamonds’ Energy providers have also expressed an interest in crypto projects. Casa dos Ventos, which partners with France’s TotalEnergies on wind power, and U.S.-based investment firm Global Infrastructure Partners’ (GIP) Atlas Renewable Energy confirmed their intentions to Reuters. French utility Engie’s subsidiary in Brazil and Auren Energia, the joint venture between Votorantim Energia and CPP Investments, Canada Pension Plan’s global investment arm, are also looking into projects to monetize their unused energy, three sources told Reuters. The companies declined to comment. Providers look at consumers like this as if they were diamonds, said Raphael Gomes, a lawyer who has been working on several crypto projects. Companies are assessing different models, including buying equipment to mine on their own. In Bahia, electricity provider Eletrobras, the biggest in the country, is installing ASIC mining machines, along with a microgrid fed by a wind turbine, solar panels and batteries, for a pilot project. “We want to understand how this industry works,” said Juliano Dantas, Eletrobras’ vice president for innovation. The work could help energy providers prepare to enter the data center industry, which the Brazilian government is trying to attract as a strategy to grow the clean energy economy. There are concerns about the industry’s water use, as some of the regions with the biggest amount of unused energy also suffer from droughts. Brazil also has infrastructure problems and lacks regulations for cryptocurrency mining. “We went after 400 MW it was like a Sisyphean journey, a bit difficult,” said Bruno Vaccotti, an executive at Penguin. “We’re still exploring Brazil, but it’s not that easy.” Leticia Fucuchima, Reuters Additional reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft and Samuel Chen.
Category:
E-Commerce
China’s factory activity shrank for a sixth straight month in September, the longest slump since 2019, an official report said Tuesday.The official manufacturing purchasing managers index, or PMI, improved to 49.8 from 49.4 in August. But it remained below the 50-cutoff level between contraction and expansion on a scale of 0 to 100.A private sector PMI survey by the credit research and rating startup RatingDog was more upbeat, with September’s overall PMI rising to 51.2 from 50.5 in August.The mixed manufacturing measures reflect persisting sluggish domestic demand and uncertainties over trade tensions with the United States.More detailed data measuring new orders and production saw month-on-month improvements.“The September PMI reads from China offered a picture that looked less like a coherent growth engine and more like a car with one cylinder firing while another misfires,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentaryCompanies are under pressure from price cutting amid rough competition, he said.“Factories are moving more goods, but they’re being forced to do it at thinner margins, like street vendors selling more bowls of noodles at half price just to keep the crowd coming,” Innes said.The latest data show China’s economy is gaining momentum, with output accelerating slightly, said National Bureau of Statistics chief statistician Huo Lihui.China’s official manufacturing PMIs first slipped back into contraction in April as trade friction with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration heated up after he took office.The two sides are still slowly working their way toward a broad trade agreement after exchanging threats of sky-high tariffs on each others’ exports.A pause in steep U.S. tariff hikes on China has been extended until November, while a Sept. 19 phone call between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping offered glimmers of hope for improving relations.A truce hinges largely on a widely anticipated U.S. proposal for transferring ownership of TikTok to a U.S. company from its Chinese owner ByteDance. That would also require Beijing’s approval.A face-to-face meeting between Trump and Xi is set for the end of October in South Korea on the sidelines of an annual summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.China’s economy has remained in the doldrums, bogged down by a prolonged slump in the property sector, elevated unemployment and weak household spending.Some economists are hoping that a rate cut by China’s central bank by the end of the year could help encourage more spending and investment. This month, the People’s Bank of China left its key lending rates unchanged following the U.S. Federal Reserve’s rate cut for the first time this year. Chan Ho-Him, AP Business Writer
Category:
E-Commerce
Adventure travel used to mean strapping on a backpack and vigorously sweating your way up a steep mountain with a can of bear spray swinging from your belta niche pursuit for the hardcore. But the page has turned: The once extreme is now mainstream. Marriott Bonvoy, the rewards program from hotel giant Marriott International, is riding this momentum with the launch of Marriott Bonvoy Outdoors, a hub showcasing more than 450 outdoor-focused hotels and 50,000 homes and villas, along with curated tours and activities. The launch, announced Tuesday, includes a real-world treasure hunt across 20 outdoor destinations in North America led by Dylan Efron, actor Zac Efrons brother and self-proclaimed outdoorsman. ‘Adventure-first’ travel is on the rise Its no surprise Marriott is doubling down now. The adventure-first traveler base has climbed from 30% to 40%, and two-thirds of international travelers now fall under the Open to Adventure banner, as reported by the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA). The market has soared to become a $1.16 trillion global movement. And its not just about cliff faces and kayaks anymore. Seventy percent of travelers say they now prioritize cultural exchange and physical activity in their trips, ATTA says. The pandemic swiftly propelled this shift. While business plummeted, Airbnb dropped 40% and Expedia 58%, nature-based travel was in full bloom, the Boston Globe reported at the time. [Photo: Marriott] Pitchup.com, which books lodges, cabins, and campsites, reported advance reservations for 2021 were six times higher than the year before, the Globe reported. Getaway, which rents tiny cabins in the woods, saw bookings spike 148%. Travelers voted with their wallets for fewer crowds and more campfires. And as we all know, demand sparks supply. Destinations that once offered a handful of local activities now tempt travelers with dozens, if not hundreds, of ways to hike, paddle, surf, or stargaze. And Marriott is hardly alone. Its fellow hotel giants are racing into the woods as well. Last July, Hyatt Hotels teamed up with glamping brand Under Canvas, pulling its safari-style tents into the loyalty fold. And earlier last year, Hilton Hotels linked with AutoCamp, making Airstream suites and luxury tents bookable through its platform. All of this comes as the broader travel business is facing potential headwinds from a rapidly shifting political climate. The U.S. economy is projected to lose $12.5 billion in international traveler spending this year, according to the London-based World Travel & Tourism Council. In April, Oxford Economics had warned that intensifying “America first” policies from the Trump administration were breeding a negative sentiment toward the U.S. among potential international travelers. Julia Simpson, president and CEO of the council, spoke bluntly in a statement. This is a wake-up call for the U.S. government,” she said. “The worlds biggest travel economy is heading in the wrong direction, not because of a lack of demand, but because of a failure to act. While other nations are rolling out the welcome mat, the U.S. government is putting up the closed sign.
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||