Business

22 Mar 2021; MEMO: Saudi Aramco will ensure China's energy security remains its highest priority for the next 50 years and beyond as new and existing energy sources run in parallel for some time, CEO Amin Nasser told the China Development Forum on Sunday, reported Reuters.

Head of Israeli National Economic Council Avi Simhon has revealed that Israel and the UAE are planning to establish a railway project linking Abu Dhabi with Haifa, Sama news agency reported yesterday.

According to the news site, Simhon told the Hebrew press that the two countries are studying several mega infrastructure projects, including this railway.

22 Mar 2021; MEMO: Qatari and Mauritanian officials met in Doha yesterday to discuss restoring diplomatic ties for the first time since they were severed as part of the 2017 boycott of Qatar by a number of Gulf and other Arab states.

21 Mar 2021; MEMO: Saudi Arabian state oil giant Aramco is betting on an Asian-led rebound in energy demand this year after it reported a steep slide in net profit for 2020 on Sunday and scaled back its spending plans, reports Reuters.

The COVID-19 pandemic took a heavy toll on the company and its global peers in 2020, but oil prices have rallied this year as economies recover from last year's downturn and after oil producers extended output cuts.

New Delhi, Mar 21 (PTI) As many as 449 infrastructure projects, each worth Rs 150 crore or more, have been hit by cost overruns totalling more than Rs 4.29 lakh crore, according to a report.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation monitors infrastructure projects worth Rs 150 crore and above.

Of the 1,736 such projects, 449 reported cost overruns and 547 were delayed.

New Delhi, Mar 21 (PTI) India's top-12 ports witnessed considerable decline in cargo traffic for the eleventh straight month in February to 600.62 million tonnes (MT), according to ports' apex body IPA

Cargo traffic at 12 major ports that are under the control of the Centre dropped by 6.61 per cent to 600.62 million tonnes (MT) during April-February this fiscal, compared with 643.10 MT in the year-ago period, the Indian Ports Association (IPA) said in its latest report

Hyderabad, Mar 20 (PTI) Uranium exploration has been taken up in Arunachal Pradesh by the Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research, a senior official has said.

AMD is a constituent unit of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE).

20 Mar 2021; MEMO: The Egyptian Cabinet of Ministers on Friday revealed the truth about what has been circulating on social media and news websites about the sales of ports and airports to foreign parties.

The Media Centre of the Council of Ministers denied the news about selling Egyptian ports and airports to foreign parties, adding that what is being circulated is untrue.

Mexico City, Mar 19 (AP-PTI) Mexican officials said Thursday they have found an oil field with possible reserves of 500 million to 600 million barrels, but President Andr s Manuel L pez Obrador vowed not to pump more than 2 million barrels per day nationwide, the amount he says is needed to supply domestic demand.

This new policy means not pumping more oil than is needed to cover domestic demand for fuels, L pez Obrador said. In quantitative terms, this means that during our administration we will not pump out of the ground more than two million barrels per day.

Washington, Mar 19 (PTI) Five powerful Democratic senators on Thursday urged President Joe Biden to rescind his predecessor Donald Trump's ban on some non-immigrant visas, including the H-1B visa which is popular among Indian IT professionals, saying this creates uncertainties for US employers, their foreign-born professional workers and their families.

In June 2020, Trump instituted Proclamation 10052, halting the processing of non-immigrant H-1B, L-1, H-2B, and J-1 visas, based on the alleged potential risk to the labour market.