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Wednesday, August 6, 2025

Apollo buys majority stake in Stream Data Centers

 Apollo (NYSE: APO) today announced that Apollo-managed funds (the “Apollo Funds”) have agreed to acquire a majority interest in Stream Data Centers (“SDC” or the “Company”) from Stream Realty Partners (“SRP”). With Apollo’s backing, SDC is positioned to execute on a multi-gigawatt pipeline while enabling Apollo Funds and affiliates to potentially deploy billions of dollars into next-generation digital infrastructure. SDC’s management team will retain a minority stake and continue leading the business.

SDC builds, leases, manages and operates hyperscale data center campuses and has delivered more than 20 campuses to date. The Company controls over 4 gigawatts of long-term powered land and has a robust near-term pipeline. With Apollo Funds’ capital and strategic support, SDC plans to scale platform-wide development to meet accelerating demand from hyperscale cloud and AI providers across key Tier 1 and Tier 2 U.S. markets.

“Stream Data Centers represents a landmark digital infrastructure transaction for Apollo,” Apollo Partners Joseph Jackson and Trevor Mills said. “With deep development expertise and a valuable long-term land fund in key growth markets, we believe SDC is uniquely positioned to serve the infrastructure needs of the world’s most sophisticated technology customers. Apollo will bring scaled capital and structuring capabilities to help drive recurring origination across our ecosystem. We look forward to partnering with SDC as a key operating platform to deliver next-gen capacity at scale.”

Michael Lahoud and Paul Moser, Co-Managing Partners of Stream Data Centers, stated, “We are excited to partner with Apollo on the next phase of SDC's growth amid robust demand for data center solutions. After more than two decades of delivering exceptional data center experiences, SDC has created a building and operating model with very strong fundamentals based on collaborative, enduring customer relationships. This symbiotic relationship with Apollo amplifies that existing strength, offering access to the capital required to significantly scale our developments at the rate hyperscale customers demand. We look forward to working with the Apollo team to execute on our pipeline — and we extend our sincere gratitude to SRP for providing the firm foundations that have helped SDC become the organization it is today.”

Apollo estimates that data centers will require several trillion dollars of global investment over the next decade, driven by a secular global industrial renaissance, with substantial investments required in power, facilities and semiconductor chips. Since 2022, Apollo-managed funds have deployed approximately $38 billion into next-generation infrastructure investments, including renewable energy, digital platforms and compute capacity. The firm plans to significantly scale its investment in these areas in the coming years, both through Stream and as a capital partner to other market participants.

As part of the transaction, Apollo Funds and SRP will commit new capital to Stream’s existing data center land fund to accelerate site development for 650 MW of near-term power capacity across campuses in metro Chicago, Atlanta and Dallas. A newly formed subsidiary of the Apollo Funds will assume the role of investment manager of the land fund.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed in 2025.

Goldman Sachs & Co. acted as sole financial advisor to Stream Data Centers, while Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP served as legal counsel. Moelis & Company acted as financial advisor to the Apollo Funds on the transaction, while Latham & Watkins LLP served as legal counsel.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apollo-funds-acquire-majority-stake-120000001.html

NATO Member Scrambles Jets As Russia Destroys Gas Facility Key To Imports From US, Azerbaijan

Russia carried out an overnight drone strike on a crucial gas pumping and metering facility in Ukraine, triggering a large fire at the site, Ukrainian officials reported Wednesday. Importantly the station is part of an LNG imports scheme from the US and Azerbaijan. According to Ukraine’s energy ministry, a wave of drones targeted a metering station located near the Romania-Ukraine border, identified as part of the Transbalkan pipeline system.

NATO member Romania scrambled fighter jets in response to the large attack right on its border, Fox News reports:

Romania was forced to scramble F-16 jets after Russia carried out a strike just half a mile from the NATO nation's territory. The country's Ministry of National Defense (MApN) confirmed in a post on X that Russia carried out a drone attack near its border.

"On the night of August 5-6, the Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on the civilian infrastructure in the Ismail area, Ukraine, in the vicinity of the border with Romania," Romania's defense ministry wrote in a post on X.

"The radar systems of the MApN detected air targets in Ukrainian space, close to Tulcea County. At 1:10a.m., the population in the north of the county was warned via RO-Alert," the ministry added, in reference to Romania’s official emergency warning system.

According to more details via Fox:

The defense ministry stated that two F-16 fighter jets took off "to monitor the national airspace," but no "unauthorized intrusions" were detected. The ministry said it would carry out checks in the area and keep NATO allies updated in real time.

The drones reportedly struck oil and gas pipelines at the Orlivka plant in Odesa, Ukraine. Bright orange flames and plumes of smoke were visible across the Danube River.

Russia’s defense ministry acknowledged the intentional attack on Ukraine's gas infrastructure, coming amid a renewed exchange of attacks by both Russia and Ukraine on energy and transport sites generally. So after six months, even the so-called 'energy ceasefire' is clearly off.

Ukraine is busy making great efforts to stockpile gas ahead of what's typically a brutally cold winter season. President Zelensky called it deliberate in terms of timing.

"This was a deliberate and utterly cynical attempt to disrupt our preparations for the heating season," Zelensky said in a social media post on Wednesday.

The Transbalkan pipeline had during the Soviet era and after at one time transported Russian gas through Ukraine to several Balkan and Eastern European countries -  including Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey. 

But Russia ceased using the route in late 2019 after the launch of the TurkStream pipeline beneath the Black Sea. Now the flow direction is being reversed to get gas from external countries into Ukraine.

According to Reuters' reporting of the fresh attack:

Dozens of Russian drones attacked a gas pumping station in southern Ukraine, part of an LNG imports scheme from the U.S. and Azerbaijan, Ukraine's energy ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry described the strike on the station near the Ukraine-Romania border as directed "purely against civilian infrastructure" and targeting relations with Azerbaijan, the U.S. and European partners. 

Social media video has emerged of a large fireball above the gas facility accompanied by sounds of loud anti-aircraft fire, right near the Danube river which forms the border between the two countries.

Currently, most of Ukraine's vital gas imports are flowing in via the country's interconnectors with Hungary, Slovakia and Poland.

https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/russian-drones-destroy-gas-facility-key-imports-us-azerbaijan

Trump Slaps India With Additional 25% In Tariffs Over Russian Energy Trade

 Just as he warned yesterday, President Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on India over its purchase of Russian energy, the White House said Wednesday hours after talks between the US and Russia over the war in Ukraine failed to yield a breakthrough.

The accelerated tariffs - which will stack on top of 25% country-specific tariffs set to be implemented overnight - will go into effect within 21 days, according to the executive order signed by Trump.

“They’re fueling the war machine. And if they’re going to do that, then I’m not going to be happy,” Trump said Tuesday in an interview with CNBC.

This rhetoric was escalated in the initial paragraphs of the Executive Order:

Executive Order 14066 of March 8, 2022 (Prohibiting Certain Imports and New Investments With Respect to Continued Russian Federation Efforts To Undermine the Sovereignty and Territorial Integrity of Ukraine), expanded the scope of the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14024 of April 15, 2021 (Blocking Property With Respect To Specified Harmful Foreign Activities of the Government of the Russian Federation), to include the actions taken against Ukraine by the Government of the Russian Federation.  To address that unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States, Executive Order 14066 prohibited, among other things, the importation into the United States of certain products of Russian Federation origin, including crude oil; petroleum; and petroleum fuels, oils, and products of their distillation.

...

To deal with the national emergency described in Executive Order 14066, I determine that it is necessary and appropriate to impose an additional ad valorem duty on imports of articles of India, which is directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil.  In my judgment, imposing tariffs, as described below, in addition to maintaining the other measures taken to address the national emergency described in Executive Order 14066, will more effectively deal with the national emergency described in Executive Order 14066. 

...

Accordingly, and as consistent with applicable law, articles of India imported into the customs territory of the United States shall be subject to an additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25 percent.  

The reaction was immediate extended selling pressure in India ETF...

The Rupee is weakening...

Oil's price action was more volatile...

Read the full Executive Order here:

 

In Latest Empty Promise, Apple To Announce Another $100 Billion Investment In US Manufacturing

 President Donald Trump will announce that AI laggard Apple will commit to spend another $100 billion on domestic manufacturing, the latest (unforceable and thus meaningless) pledge by the tech giant to increase US production of its products as it seeks to avoid punishing tariffs on its flagship iPhones.

The announcement scheduled for 4:30pm ET at the White House on Wednesday includes a new manufacturing program designed to bring more of Apple’s supply chain to the US, with an eye toward manufacturing additional critical components domestically, according to a White House official who detailed the announcement on the condition of anonymity.

Tim Apple and Donald Trump

“President Trump’s America First economic agenda has secured trillions of dollars in investments that support American jobs and bolster American businesses,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said in a statement. “Today’s announcement with Apple is another win for our manufacturing industry that will simultaneously help reshore the production of critical components to protect America’s economic and national security.”

As Bloomberg reminds us, earlier this year, Trump warned that he would hit Apple with a tariff of at least 25% if it didn’t move manufacturing of the iPhone to the US, a day after meeting with CEO Tim Apple Cook at the White House.

Cook has led a push by Apple to win a carve-out for its iPhone product line, with phones currently primarily manufactured in China and India. The company previously announced it plans to spend $500 billion in the US over the next four years, which will include work on a new server manufacturing facility in Houston, a supplier academy in Michigan and additional spending with its existing suppliers in the country. Wednesday’s announcement will bring Apple’s cumulative commitment to $600 billion, the White House said, all of which is just empty promises until Apple actually does something besides just talk. 

The announcement comes with Trump readying plans to unveil a tariff on all products containing semiconductor chips as soon as next week. Separately, the president’s country-specific tariffs on dozens of trading partners are set to take effect on Thursday.

During Trump’s first term, Apple was able to win tariff carveouts for its products. If Cook is able to do so again, it could help the company avoid tariff costs that analysts expected to erode profit margins and increase consumer costs — or even offer a competitive advantage over foreign rivals like Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.

The Apple event is the latest in a flurry of announcements Trump has made alongside corporate leaders who have said they plan to increase their US presence. Earlier this year, Trump announced a $100 billion "Stargate" investment in artificial intelligence data centers from Oracle, SoftBank and OpenAI — with a goal of increasing the total to at least $500 billion — a bid to boost American innovation in technology and artificial technology. OpenAI and Oracle later announced they will develop 4.5 gigawatts of additional US data-center capacity in an expanded partnership. Last month we reported that, like all other ridiculous promises, virtually none of this massive Stargate promise will actually come to fruition. 

The president has also ramped up partnerships with key players in the chip industry, announcing that Nvidia plans to produce as much as half a trillion dollars’ worth of AI infrastructure in the US over the next four years through manufacturing partnerships.

Trump has also made securing investments a key part of negotiating with other countries on geopolitical issues, such as trade.

Part of the US’ deal with the European Union included an agreement from the EU to purchase $750 billion in American energy products and invest $600 billion in the US, while the president’s deal with Japan includes the creation of a $550 billion fund to make investments in the US. And all of these "deals" are, you guessed it, nothing more than unforceable hot air. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/latest-empty-promise-apple-announce-another-100-billion-investment-us-manufacturing

Watch: 'Invasion Fatigue' Strikes As Spanish Beach-Goers Tackle Boat-Full Of Illegal Immigrants

 by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

Video out of a small town in Spain shows beach going locals tackling and detaining a boat load of illegal immigrants who suddenly washed up and attempted to flee in the middle of the day.

The video shot in the Granada town of Castell de Ferro shows a speed boat pull up in what is clearly a coordinated trafficking attempt before around a dozen North Africans jump into the water and begin to swim to shore.

While police were chasing the illegals, frustrated Spaniards joined in, with several attempting to stop the migrants.

While some of them immediately started running, others attempted to blend in with sunbathers in an effort to avoid detection.

According to reports in the Spanish media, while several of the men were captured, others managed to get away.

This is happening every day fro years in Spain, yet another European country that has thrown its borders wide open and has been invaded by upwards of 8 million illegal immigrants in recent years.

You want some more? OK…

More...

And more...

And more...

Could go on all day with these. It’s happening EVERY DAY.

Just as in other European countries, there have been widespread demonstrations against mass-migration in recent months.

Some of these turned violent following unprovoked attacks on Spanish citizens, including elderly people by migrants.

The vast majority of Spain’s citizens want mass deportation of illegal immigrants, and there are even majorities for this policy amongst left-wing voters.

The Left-wing government seems to believes that the way to ‘solve’ the mass migration problem is by simply giving them all residency papers.

The number of immigrants living in Spain under family reunification permits has surged by more than 650 percent in the past five years, according to data from the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration.

Spain has also seen an alarming rise in sexual violence over recent years, culminating in a record-high number of rapes, which reached 5,206 incidents in 2024, according to new official statistics from the Ministry of the Interior.

With an average of 14 rapes per day across the country, the figure nearly triples the 1,878 cases reported in 2019 when five daily incidents were reported. The upward trend has remained consistent year-over-year since 2018, aside from a brief dip during 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions.

The right wing Vox party has vowed to deport all illegal immigrants, and to also remove foreign nationals who have refused to adopt Spanish customs.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/watch-invasion-fatigue-strikes-spanish-beach-goers-tackle-boat-full-illegal-immigrants