Today’s ESG Updates
- Saudi Arabia to Cut Asia Crude Prices: War-driven oil premiums are fading as global supply stabilizes and refiners shift to alternative sources including U.S., West African, and Russian crude.
- Luxury Leather Supply Chain Faces Deforestation Scrutiny: An LVMH-linked supplier is accused of sourcing hides tied to Paraguayan deforestation, raising concerns ahead of upcoming EU sustainability rules.
- First LNG Tanker Clears Strait of Hormuz Since War: A UAE-operated LNG carrier has crossed the strait amid heightened maritime risk and shifting security conditions in the Gulf.
- Mass Legal Claim Over River Wye Pollution: Over 1,300 claimants allege industrial poultry farming and waste runoff have caused severe ecological damage in one of the UK’s largest environmental lawsuits.
Saudi Arabia set to cut Asia crude prices as war-driven premiums fade
Saudi Arabia is expected to lower its official June crude selling prices for Asia as spot premiums ease and demand cools following supply disruptions caused by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. The June official selling price for Arab Light crude will likely slide to a premium of $7.50 to $14.50 a barrel above average Dubai and Oman quotes, down $5 to $12 per barrel from May. The average premium for Dubai crude in April is $15.22 a barrel, down from $38.30 in March.
Physical crude prices have softened as initial panic buying subsided and refiners secured replacement cargoes from the U.S. and West Africa, while simultaneously increasing imports of Russian crude.
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Further reading: Saudi Arabia may lower June oil prices to Asia from record levels
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Luxury leather supply chain faces scrutiny over Paraguay deforestation links
The Italian leather company Nuti Ivo Group, which became part of the French luxury company LVMH in 2023, bought animal skins from Paraguayan companies associated with deforestation, specifically for more than 100,000 hectares of deforested land. According to Export Genius, Nuti Ivo Group imported some 2,710 metric tonnes of leather from Paraguay in 2025. The leather was worth about $3.8 million (€3.4 million).
The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), passed in 2023, will ban the sale of products in the EU if they are linked to land cleared after December 2020, with the law due to come into force at the end of 2026. Environmental groups, such as Earthsight and Global Witness, stated that leather should be included in these regulations to avoid policy incoherence.
Only 45% of Nuti Ivo’s hides are traceable to a specific slaughterhouse, and CEO Fabrizio Nuti, who holds a 40% stake in a Paraguayan tannery, is lobbying to exempt leather from EU rules targeting products linked to land cleared after December 2020.
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Further reading: LVMH-owned leather-maker linked to deforestation pushes to weaken EU green law
Related Articles
Here is a list of articles selected by our Editorial Board that have gained significant interest from the public:
First LNG tanker clears Hormuz since war
A 136,357-cubic-meter LNG tanker managed by the UAE’s ADNOC has crossed the Strait of Hormuz and is now positioned off the west coast of India, according to data from ICIS LNG Edge, Marine Traffic, and LSEG. This appears to be the first successful crossing of a loaded LNG tanker through the strait since the Iran war began on February 28. The tanker was last seen in the Gulf on March 30 and had ceased transmitting location signals for several weeks before appearing near India.
Ships operating in the Gulf are using evasive maneuvers, such as stopping location transmissions or using false identification numbers, to avoid potential targeting or detention.
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Further reading: ADNOC LNG tanker crosses Strait of Hormuz for first time since Iran war, ship-tracking data shows
Mass legal claim filed over river Wye pollution blamed on poultry waste
More than 1,300 people have signed up to sue Avara Foods, its subsidiary Freemans of Newent, and Welsh Water in what lawyers call the UK’s biggest ever environmental pollution claim concerning the River Wye and River Usk. Claimants allege that the rivers have suffered pollution, turning green and smelly, due to water runoff containing high concentrations of phosphorus, nitrogen, and bacteria from thousands of tonnes of poultry manure and sewage biosolids. Around 24 million chickens, which account for about a quarter of the total UK chicken population, are raised in the Wye’s catchment area.
Lawyers for Avara and Freemans have stated the claim is an oversimplification that is fundamentally misconceived in law and fact, saying that it lacks a proper scientific basis.
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Further reading: Industrial chicken producer hits out over Wye and Usk river pollution claim
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by the authors are their own, not those of impakter.com — In the Cover Photo: Pump-jack mining crude oil. Cover Photo Credit: Zbynek Burival
