TODAY: Qatar has its own EV brand + The Commercial Bank of Dubai is lining up a green bond issuance
Good morning, wonderful people. The new cycle has slowed once more, but there are a couple of stories making waves in the region.
THE BIG CLIMATE STORY- Qatar’s smart transport company EcoTransit has launched Vim, the country’s first electric vehicle brand, and the Commercial Bank of Dubai has hired banks to arrange its inaugural USD-denominated green bond issuance.
^^ We have the details on these stories and more in the news well, below.
THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- There isn’t one specific story dominating the international headlines this morning, but Germany said it will launch a 15-year, EUR 50 bn program aimed at helping its struggling industrial sector shift to climate-neutral technologies. The program will be open to firms with at least 10 kilotons of carbon emissions, including heavily polluting industries such as steel, chemicals, cement, and others. The government hopes to slash 350 mn tons of carbon emissions by 2045 through the initiative, accounting for a third of the industry’s goal. “We are targeting the most emitting companies,” German Economy Minister Robert Habeck was quoted as saying. The story was picked up by Reuters and Bloomberg.
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OVER IN COPLAND- Oil and gas should be on the table of discussions at COP28, COP28 Director-General Majid Al Suwaidi told Axios in an interview published Monday. “We can't have an exclusive conversation that misses out on the whole constituency who are … best placed to help you solve the problem,” he said. “We're asking them to come and say what they're going to do to address the climate challenge,” Al Suwaidi added. He said the incoming COP presidency is concerned about having a “transparent” process. He responded to criticism over the COP presidency for its oil and gas ties, stressing that “we understand why that may appear to people outside, as you know, challenging.”
But the key issue of the phaseout of fossil fuels might not make it on the COP28 agenda, UN Climate Executive Secretary Simon Stiell told the Associated Press on Monday. The phaseout “is something that is at the top of every discussion or most discussions that are taking place,” Stiell said. “It is an issue that has global attention. How that translates into an agenda item and a (climate talks) outcome we will see,” he added. He said he can’t promise to have the topic on the agenda during climate negotiations, stressing that it is up to COP28 President-Designate Sultan Al Jaber to decide.
ALSO- Draft decisions to be adopted at COP28 will be discussed at the Bonn Climate Change Conference: Discussions and negotiations on the global stocktake, global goal on adaptation, just transition, loss and damage, and the mitigation work program will feature in this year’s 10-day Bonn Climate Change Conference, which kicked off yesterday in Bonn, Germany. The conference will see delegations come together to hash out the details of proposals to be presented at COP28. The conference held a number of mandated events yesterday including, the Glasgow-Sharm El-Sheikh work programme on adaptation, a workshop on country-driven strategies for Just Transition and Economic Diversification, and the first investment-focused event under the Sharm el-Sheikh mitigation ambition and implementation work program. The majority of the sessions will be available to watch live.
WATCH THIS SPACE #1- The WB is facing pressure from Barbados: The World Bank is facing increasing pressure to provide USD 100 bn in capital for climate and development finance to aid developing countries fight against climate change, the Financial Times reports. The proposal — put forward by Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley — would help reduce “excessive risks” that developing countries have to take to borrow to fund green investments. The proposal comes amid efforts to revive the Bridgetown Initiative — a plan to reform how rich nations extend development finance to developing countries — and will be discussed at The Summit for a New Global Financial Pact in Paris later this month. While the World Bank’s largest shareholders, led by the US, have previously rejected calls for more funding, Germany’s Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Svenja Schulze told the FT that the bank is open to considering the proposal, the news outlet said.
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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-
Saudi Arabia will host the Arab-Chinese Business Conference next Sunday, 11 June and Monday, 12 June in Riyadh. The conference will bring together CEOs, business leaders, investors, and entrepreneurs from the Middle East and China to collaborate on new trade and investment initiatives in different sectors, including renewables and minerals. A panel discussion titled Clean Energy and Renewables – Pathways to Emissions Reduction is scheduled on the first day, according to the program (pdf). The second day will focus on the localization of renewable energy and on value chain opportunities in mining.
The UAE will host The Arab Green Summit on Tuesday, 13 June to Wednesday, 14 June in Dubai. The two-day summit will bring together industry players and experts for conversations on climate change and sustainability and solutions for concurrent climate-related issues in the region. Key themes to be addressed during the summit include industry decarbonization, renewable and clean energy potential and implementation, sustainable building and construction and others.
Morocco will host the Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Africa on Tuesday, 13 June to Wednesday, 14 June in Marrakech. The event will bring together stakeholders from the private and public sector to discuss the world’s most pressing topics and assess potential solutions. Those include the impact of a decelerating global economy, spiking food and energy prices, supply-chain shocks and risks of distress among sovereign borrowers.
France will host The Summit for a New Global Financial Pact on Thursday, 22 June to Friday, 23 June in Paris. The two-day summit will bring together heads of states and heads of multilateral development banks, international organizations, the private sector and international NGOs to shape a new finance “toolbox” and “pave the way towards a more balanced financial partnership between the north and south.” It will also see new agreements in a bid to relieve debt distress and allow countries to access additional financing to invest in sustainable development and slash emissions.
Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.