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Alexander Novak, Russia’s energy minister, pauses during a panel session on day two of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Thursday, June 3, 2021.
Andrey Rudakov | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak on Thursday said the oil and gas-rich country may soon be tempted to move away from U.S. dollar-denominated crude contracts if President Joe Biden’s administration continues to impose targeted economic sanctions.

“Well, ideally we would prefer not to move away from the dollar as it is an international currency used for settlements,” Novak told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, according to a translation.

“But if our American partners create this type of situation we shall have no other choice but gradually do that,” he added.

His comments come shortly after Russia announced it would completely remove U.S. dollar assets from its National Wealth Fund.

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said at the same event Thursday that the changes could be expected within a month, according to Reuters. Russia’s NWF accumulates oil revenue and was initially dedicated to supporting the country’s pensions system.

The move comes ahead of a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden later this month.

‘Active player on the global energy scene’

“We shall continue to be the world leader in the fossil fuels market and we shall diversify by going into the LNG and petrochemicals (markets),” Novak said, referring to the acronym for liquefied natural gas.

“Plus develop new energy production, clean energy,” he continued, citing hydrogen, carbon storage technologies and the development of new fuels, among other projects.

Russia’s economy has been operating under international sanctions since 2014 after its annexation of Crimea.

Its role in a pro-Russian uprising in east Ukraine, 2016 U.S. election interference, a nerve agent poisoning in the U.K. and its role in the SolarWinds cyberattack, among other incidents, have also all prompted further sanctions. For its part, Russia denies any involvement or wrongdoing.

International benchmark Brent crude futures traded at $71.56 a barrel on Thursday afternoon in London, up around 0.3%, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures stood at $68.99, roughly 0.2% higher.

Oil prices have climbed more than 30% since the start of the year.

In Oct. 2019, Russia’s largest oil company Rosneft set the euro as the default currency for all new exports of crude oil in an attempt to shield it from the impact of U.S. sanctions.

— CNBC’s Holly Ellyatt contributed to this report.

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BYD’s new global electric van looks massive driving on public streets

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BYD's new global electric van looks massive driving on public streets

BYD is preparing to launch its new E-Vali electric van in Europe and other global markets. With its official launch just around the corner, the EV delivery van has been spotted out in the wild. Compared to other cars on the road, the new BYD’s electric van looks enormous.

Meet BYD’s new E-Vali, a global electric van

We got our first look at the E-Vali during its global debut at IAA Transportation in Hannover, Germany, last September.

BYD’s new electric van was showcased alongside several other electric vans and trucks designed specifically for the European market.

The E-Vali is a fully electric light commercial vehicle (LCV) built for last-mile and delivery services. It will be offered in two sizes: 3.5t and 4.25t. Powered by a BYD Blade LFP battery with a 126 kWh capacity, the E-Vali offers a range of 220 km (137 miles) to 250 km (155 miles), depending on the model.

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By using its 6-in-1 EV powertrain, the unit maximizes space and efficiency. The larger (4.25t) model has an extra-large cargo capacity of up to 17.9 m³, which BYD claims “surpasses many other vans” in the same category.

BYD's-global-electric-van
BYD E-Vali electric delivery van for Europe and other global markets (Source: BYD)

With an official launch expected over the next few months, the larger E-Vali model is out for testing. A few new photos from Inside China Auto give us a sneak peek of BYD’s global electric van.

Despite the camouflage, the images provide a clear view of the new van from the side and rear. You can see how big the E-Vali is compared to other cars on the road, especially in the second pic, as it appears to overshadow the truck in front of it.

Like the caption reads: “The BYD E-Vali is absolutely bloody enormous.” The larger E-Vali model is 6,995 mm (275″) long, 2,096 mm (82.5″) wide, and 2,780 mm (109″) tall.

Compared to the Kia’s new PV5 Cargo, which measures 4,695 mm in length, 1,995 mm in width, and 1,923 mm in height, BYD’s global electric van is significantly larger. The PV5 also offers much less cargo capacity, at up to 4.4 m³.

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EV competitors ZEEKR and NIO sign agreement to share each other’s charging networks

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EV competitors ZEEKR and NIO sign agreement to share each other's charging networks

Chinese EV automakers ZEEKR and NIO have announced a rare and exciting cooperation to enable driver access to each other’s charging networks in China. This collaboration combines some of the world’s fastest EV charging with one of the largest networks in the country.

Two of the biggest names in EV development and infrastructure have combined forces to deliver even more accessible charging to drivers in China. NIO Power operates as the automaker’s infrastructure division, consisting of its network of public battery swap stations and EV superchargers, plus additional technologies like power mobile and power home.

Per the latest map posted by NIO on Weibo (seen below), its network consists of 2,829 supercharging stations in China, which are home to 13,027 charging piles. There are also an additional 1,741 destination charging stations offering 13,281 chargers and 3,337 battery swap stations.

With such a foothold in China, it’s no wonder dozens of other companies have signed on to gain access to NIO’s charging network before today’s announcement with ZEEKR. Previously, NIO has collaborated with companies like CATL, Xiaomi, and Chery, to name a few.

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ZEEKR Power is now the 18th partner to join NIO’s charging network, but is one of the few brands to bring its own network of ultra-fast superchargers into the network instead of simply enabling access.

ZEEKR NIO charging
Source: NIO/Weibo

ZEEKR and NIO combine charging access in China

NIO and ZEEKR shared announcements of the charging partnership on their respective Weibo pages today. NIO called the collaboration a “charging interconnection cooperation,” while ZEEKR described it as a “cooperation on two-way interconnection of charging networks.”

Either way, ZEEKR drivers will have more streamlined access to NIO’s EV chargers (NIO’s network has always been open to all models), and drivers of NIO and its sub-brands (Onvo and Firefly) will now be able to access ZEEKR’s supercharger stations, which currently sit at 1,580 locations around China.

Those chargers will now appear in the NIO app and on their BEV’s charger map display.

CnEVPost pointed out that ZEEKR’s parent company, Geely Automobile Holdings, was the first OEM to sign a charging agreement with NIO Power back in March 2024. In the past year-plus, 16 additional companies have joined the fold, with Geely’s sub-brand ZEEKR being number 18.

China is once again leading the world in EV technology and strategy. It is combining access to as many EV chargers across the country as possible to provide drivers of NIO, ZEEKR, Xiaomi, and all other makes and models with a larger, faster, and more streamlined network to utilize. We love to see it.

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OPEC+ members could hike July oil production by 411,000 barrels per day: Sources

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OPEC+ members could hike July oil production by 411,000 barrels per day: Sources

Oil prices eased on Tuesday as market participants weighed the possibility of an OPEC+ decision to further increase its crude oil output at a meeting later this week.

Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images

Eight oil-producing nations of the OPEC+ alliance could hike output by as much as 411,000 barrels per day in July, two OPEC+ delegates told CNBC, continuing a rapid unwinding of voluntary production cuts.

Markets are awaiting a final decision on July production, with the eight countries — heavyweight producers Russia and Saudi Arabia, alongside Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Oman and the United Arab Emirates — set to review market conditions and iron out their output steps on May 31.

These nations have been carrying out two sets of voluntary production cuts.

One, totaling 1.66 million barrels per day, is in effect until the end of next year. Under the other, the countries trimmed their production by an additional 2.2 million barrels per day until the end of the first quarter. They have since agreed to gradually increase output by a combined 1 million barrels per day over April-June, including 411,000 barrel-per-day hikes in each of this and next month.

The OPEC+ delegates, who commented anonymously given the sensitivity of discussions, told CNBC that a further increase of as much as 411,000 barrels per day in July could be agreed this weekend.

Market attention has increasingly shifted away from the official unanimous quotas of OPEC+ — which the group left unchanged on Thursday — to the unwinding of the eight members’ voluntary trims. Crude demand typically picks up during the summer, given higher consumption of jet fuel and gasoline for seasonal travel, along with increases in crude burn to produce electricity for air conditioning in several Middle Eastern countries.

This could lend support to oil prices which have struggled amid broader market uncertainty triggered by U.S. tariffs.

Ice Brent futures with July expiry were trading at $65.31 per barrel at 12:44 p.m. London time, up 0.63% from the Thursday close price. The front-month Nymex WTI contract was at $62.22 per barrel, higher by 0.61% from the previous day’s settlement.

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