©AP The strain on oil and gas producer balance sheets pushed two companies into default over the past three days as the recent stabilisation in crude prices fails to staunch energy failures. Bankruptcy protection filings from Ultra Petroleum and Midstates Petroleum Company on Friday and Saturday, respectively, have propelled the default rate for US junk-rated energy groups to its highest level on record. More On this topic IN Oil & Gas The defaults are the latest failures to strike an industry struggling with an oil price that has declined more than 60 per cent from a 2014 peak. Analysts with credit rating agency Fitch have tracked a surge in energy delinquencies over the past year, with the trailing default rate climbing to a record 13 per cent from less than 2 per cent a year ago. Fitch expects the default rate to reach 20 per cent by the end of the year. “This is not the end of the energy defaults,” Scott Roberts, co-head of high yield at Invesco, said. “There are a number of companies with capital structures that are not sustainable at $45 oil.” The two latest groups to default counted almost $6bn of debt between them and a combined cash position of $362m, according to the latest regulatory filings available. The bankruptcy filings come as banks conduct twice-yearly lending determinations, with investors braced for cuts to many revolving credit facilities. Economists with JPMorgan noted on Monday that banks have tightened lending standards for commercial and industrial loans, citing “deterioration in the energy sector” as a likely contributing factor. Separate figures tracked by Standard & Poor’s showed the overall high-yield default rate in the US climbed to 3.9 per cent at the end of April, its highest level since September 2010. Sharon Bonelli, an analyst with Fitch, said defaults had been “very concentrated” in commodity-linked industries, as companies adjust to the lower prices. The bounce in crude prices from January lows, when the international oil marker slipped to $27.10 a barrel, has confounded investors who warn a global slowdown could again weigh on commodities. The rise has also fuelled concern that shale producers may begin to pump oil again, potentially leaving the industry with so-called zombies — companies that operate with too much debt to adequately invest in the underlying business but can cover their interest payments. “If we stayed for a while at $30 a barrel, strategic bankruptcies would have accelerated,” Mr Roberts said. “That would have entailed companies filing for bankruptcy, saying ‘There’s no hope here. We need to restructure’. “But if we have this rapid appreciation in crude, you’ll end up with companies that should have restructured but that will muddle along with too much debt.” eric.platt@ft.com Twitter: @ericgplatt Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link

Urbanisation is something that is now more or less natural in modern society. Cities are something that a large chunk of the population live in, work in or at least visit from time to time. Vincent Callebaut Architects, France, have been taking a stand in recent years to bring the modern city back to earthly roots, by implementing designs for a variety of high rise buildings that would redefine Paris as no longer just the City of Love, but a sustainable, green utopia. Despite the majority of people viewing Paris as a much desired place for tourism, one that casts beauty and grace in the form of the Eiffel Tower and homemade croissants, Paris has within it huge amounts of housing and density issues. The new city proposal is known as Paris Smart City 2050, and is devised from the idea that high rise buildings will utilise a variety of self-sustaining technologies, such as rain retention systems for irrigation, insulating bio-facades that create bio-fuel, and photo-sensitive electro-chemical shells that use sunlight to generate electricity. An architectural proposal unlike any other, the Smart City design consists of Phylolights, in which devices use wind turbines to provide lighting and energy across to other buildings. Every single one of the structures aims to be energy positive (BEPOS) certified which in turn, over time, will produce more energy than they are able to consumer, delivering huge positive impacts in the way of climate change and city sustainability. The most popular city in France could be getting a makeover in the way of environmental care any time, and if plans were to go ahead, the idea stands that an Eco-friendly city could be in motion by 2050. The new Paris will look like a sci-fi fantasy, through stacked vertical farms (farmscrapers) , honeycomb towers and green towers wrapped in bamboo mesh that hold orchards and vertical food gardens. Although plans have not been implemented into practise, they have been in discussion since 2015 and with climate change growing ever nearer irreversible damage, proposals such as Smart City at least offer acknowledgement that there are options in attempting to create sustainable, functional spaces, beneficial for both man and planet. Smart City aims to combat climate change with green designs that still maintain Paris’ rich, architectural past.

Technology has been revolutionising every aspect of modern life, and shows no signs of slowing down, with advancements being made every single day. The vast majority of industries have been, and are being, affected by technological advancements that bring sectors ever nearer the future. For the construction industry, continual updates and upgrades in the latest and greatest advancements mean some huge changes are on the way to how the industry functions and provides for clients. Here is a a list of 8 of the most futuristic technologies set to take over construction, and how they will change the industry as we know it: 3D Printed Houses: Printing houses via 3D services offer a glimpse at what the future of home building might look like. The process involves creating housing parts, both on and off site, which can be constructed together at a later date. Apis Cor of San Francisco, have been deemed the pioneers behind the project, after they proved the ability to create 3D print walls from concrete in a short space of time. The Printer itself resembles a small-scale crane and 3D printed houses offer an efficient solution to aid the homeless epidemic, provide spaces for those living in poverty, and bring hope to those who have lost their houses in natural disasters, such as earthquakes and tsunamis. Smart Roads: Smart Roads or Smart Highways are set to be the future of transport. They involve the use of IoT technology and rely on sensors in a bid to make driving not only safer, but more sustainable in terms of climate change impacts. The innovative technology can charge electric vehicles while they are moving, generate electricity to do so, and provide real-time information to drivers about changing weather conditions, potential traffic implications and parking suggestions. Self-heating Concrete: Currently millions are being invested in restoring, fixing and maintaining roads, buildings and bridges every year. Self-heating concrete however is less likely to crack, and therefore needs less frequent restoration, which could be valuable for the life span of a road or building, leading to millions of pounds being saved annually. Self-heating Concrete works by reactivating bacteria used when originally being mixed to excrete calcite, which can heal a crack when water enters the concrete, something that previously would have caused lasting damage. Transparent Aluminium: Almost as strong as steel, Transparent Aluminium actually looks like glass. This breakthrough technology aims to add a futuristic feel to buildings, but despite herculean strength, it is still fragile under certain circumstances. This creation looks as though it is fresh of a Star Trek episode and is set to bring some exciting features to modern builds. Vertical Cities: As land space becomes ever more sparse, Tetris inspired designs could be taking over, as vertical cities offer space saving solutions to preserve the land while continuing to offer housing solutions to the population. Smart Bricks: Similar to Lego, Smart Bricks are modular, high strength concrete creations that are thermal energy controlled and can be connected to form a variety of shapes that aim to cut construction costs massively. They are very easy to assemble into any shape required and offer space for insulation, electricity and plumbing. An easy way to construct a dream home. Pollution Fighting Buildings:   These remarkable innovations, also known as Vertical Forests, aim to tackle air pollution by providing cities with new approaches to urbanisation. Home to over 1,000 tress and 2.500 shrubs which absorb air pollution, the buildings can act as a filter that makes the air we breathe cleaner. This is cost effective in construction as the trees and shrubs are able to absorb carbon dioxide. Bamboo Cities: Bamboo cities use structures that interlock, creating a build that is stronger than steel and more resilient than concrete, yet remains completely sustainable. Modular structures are easy to apply to bamboo cities and they aim to offer refuge for Cities that are already overpopulated by creating homes in trees. These remarkable designs can withstand certain natural disasters such as earthquake tremors, due to the highly flexible nature of bamboo.  

India has made tremendous strides towards achieving food self-sufficiency, through usage of better agricultural methods and more implementation of modern technology, the country has matured in leaps and bounds since its revolution in the late 1960s. That being said, many farmers across India are still struggling with serious challenges posing negative threats and impacts to their work. Weak marginal links and inefficient supply chains have meant the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, has began to share his vision for change surrounding the Indian Farming Industry. The fourth industrial revolution has been a highly trafficked discussion over recent months, and now Indian agriculture is getting on board with technological innovations that could help to forever change the future of the country and its residents. While technology alone is unlikely to be enough to aid the large groups of farmers in India to suddenly overcome their challenges, advancements can offer a helping hand and propose hope for a brighter future. A new key project across the country focuses on the development of agricultural drones, and a data utility platform based, in Maharashtra. This comes from a six year long collaboration between the World Economic Forum’s New Vision for Agriculture Initiative and the Government of Maharashtra. With the rise in population numbers across the globe continuing,  the demand for food has risen dramatically. So much so it is estimated there could be an increase of farmed foods by as much as 70%, by as early as 2050. Massive improvements to they way in which India farms its produce is therefore essential in terms of upkeep, efficiency and sustainability.  As farming needs to become more efficient, drones are being explored as the best potential way to add sustainability to a much needed business. The drones are set to work on surveillance and can contribute to fewer loses in the agricultural industry due to a monitoring of theft from animals, humans or predictions of damages from unexpected weather conditions. The drones will change the construction industry as well know it, with particular benefits for the farming sector, especially in areas less technologically advanced in terms of machinery implementation. The process of using drones to increase farm productivity is known as Precision Agriculture, a farming management application concept, which is based on the observation, measuring and response to inter and intra-field variability across crops and farmland. 

Khalid al-Falih The new Saudi administration under construction by Mohammed bin Salman, the monarchy’s young deputy crown prince, has been quick to jettison ministers deemed inefficient or out of line with a prevailing reformist tone in the royal court. Ali al-Naimi, once Saudi Arabia’s most influential commoner and for decades the face of energy policy in the world’s largest oil exporter, has become the most prominent minister to be replaced so far. Khalid al-Falih, a fellow Saudi Aramco veteran, took over his role on Saturday as oil minister. He is playing an influential role in shaping Prince Mohammed’s reform plans, which include taking part of the state oil company public. His appointment should provide some continuity in oil policy. Both the 30-year-old Prince Mohammed — known as MbS in western circles — and Mr Falih have indicated they believe that keeping output high is the best strategy in an industry transformed by unconventional resources. “Saudi Arabia has never advocated that it would take the role of balancing the market against the structural imbalance that was emerging,” Mr Falih said this year at the World Economic Forum in Davos. But the rise of Prince Mohammed to the top of the oil leadership has raised questions about future policy. Daniel Yergin, author of The Prize, a history of the oil industry, and vice-chairman of data provider IHS, said Mr Falih would bring a “real strategic grasp” about the role of oil “in the overall reform programme”. He will play a key role in the prince’s plans to privatise a stake in Saudi Aramco, helping to finance his plan of creating a $2tn sovereign wealth fund to speed the end of the kingdom’s reliance on oil by 2030. The deputy crown prince’s aim of granting the state oil producer independence and shifting its assets under the sovereign Public Investment Fund were probably alien to Mr Naimi’s worldview, which was forged in the kingdom’s fight to nationalise its oil wealth. The 81-year-old oil minister had raised questions over plans to increase energy prices for citizens, arguing for the paternalistic status quo. “Mr Naimi was too old. He didn’t manage to fit into the new way of thinking,” said one Saudi banker. “Naimi viewed Aramco as part of the oil ministry.” But under Mr Naimi’s authority there were some certainties: Saudi Arabia would not politicise its oil resources and there was an expectation the kingdom would hold a buffer of spare capacity to prevent prices from escalating to dangerous highs. The deputy crown prince has already indicated he is prepared to wield oil as a political tool, hinting that the kingdom could easily accelerate output to more than 11m barrels a day as its regional rival Iran tries to recoup market share after years of sanctions. Last month he isolated his oil minister and scuppered the first big attempt to reverse the price slide when he insisted that Iran must be part of any deal to freeze output. Mr Naimi’s team had briefed other countries’ ministers that Riyadh’s participation was not contingent on Tehran. In a statement on Sunday, Mr Falih said the kingdom would “maintain its stable petroleum policies”. However, he echoed recent comments from Prince Mohammed, by highlighting Saudi Arabia’s status as the only country with significant spare capacity and by positioning it as the natural beneficiary of rising demand. This is a new era for Saudi oil policy and is fraught with uncertainty. There will likely be more volatility for oil markets. – Amrita Sen, chief oil economist, Energy Aspects “We are committed to meeting existing and additional hydrocarbons demand from our expanding global customer base, backed by our current maximum sustainable capacity,” he said. There is expected to be little clarity by the next Opec meeting in June. The kingdom normally raises production to feed power plants in the summer months to help meet soaring air-conditioner use. Whether any production increase will be maintained after the summer remains to be seen. But with Prince Mohammed’s economic vision planning for a less prominent role for Saudi Arabia’s oil industry, there may be an incentive to pump more crude and secure revenues to help the kingdom make the transition to a post-oil economy. “This is a new era for Saudi oil policy and is fraught with uncertainty,” said Amrita Sen, chief oil economist at Energy Aspects, the research consultancy. “There will likely be more volatility for oil markets.” Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link