Good morning, friends. After a flurry of climate news and updates from our neck of the woods over the weekend, we have a much calmer morning today — but not without plenty of interesting reads and developments to keep our eyes on.

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY- Saudi Arabia, Oman, Egypt, and Morocco are currently the region’s leaders in the push towards green hydrogen, giving MENA massive potential to become a green hydrogen production hub. The four countries have taken substantial steps towards developing the clean energy source, but continue to face some country-specific challenges, according to research.

^^ We have chapter and verse on this in the news well below.

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- France and Germany are set to weigh in on Europe-US green subsidies debate: France and Germany’s economy ministers will reiterate EU concerns about US President Joe Biden’s landmark climate bill — the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) — and ask that no “aggressive” moves be made to tempt European companies to cross the Atlantic in search of subsidies, when they meet with White House officials today as part of a visit to Washington. Representatives of several US economic bodies have recently visited Europe promoting the incentives for US manufacture that form a key part of the USD 370 bn IRA package.

Germany’s Habeck is optimistic: German Economy Minister Robert Habeck sees the visit as a chance to explore ways for the “problematic” parts of the IRA to “perhaps be resolved,” he told Reuters. While the European Commission — which recently unveiled its proposal for a new plan to increase green industry investment in Europe — is taking the lead on resolving the trade dispute, he and Le Maire “want to lend support,” he added.

The story is seeing widespread coverage in the international press: Reuters | Financial Times | Bloomberg | Wall Street Journal | Politico | Euronews | Reuters | Bloomberg

WATCH THIS SPACE #1- Abu Dhabi will track the emissions of vehicles on its roads: Abu Dhabi will use space technology to remotely monitor vehicle emissions on its roads in a three-week test carried out in six locations, Wam said in a statement. The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi will use patented technology from NASA that will detect and quantify on-road emissions from the tailpipes of moving vehicles using laser-based overhead detectors, the statement said. The technology will allow it to identify the vehicle’s license plate number to acquire information about the vehicle’s brand, model, fuel type and emission standards.

WATCH THIS SPACE #2- Abdul Latif Jameel-backed EV maker Rivian is developing an electric bike, CEO RJ Saringe told staff on Friday, unnamed sources from Rivian told Bloomberg.

What we know: Very few details have been revealed about the product, and officials declined to comment when asked by Blomberg. The company first expressed interest in micro mobility at an October conference, when Rivian’s CEO “hinted” at the company’s interest in developing an e-bike. The company has patents for bicycle designs and parts, but it remains unclear whether the company intends to produce an electric bicycle or motorcycle, reports Bloomberg.

WATCH THIS SPACE #3- Honda and General Motors will start producing a new hydrogen fuel cell system to power fuel cell EVs in 2023, Honda’s Senior Managing Executive Director Shinji Aoyama said, according to Reuters. The automaker plans to sell some 2k units of the system by 2025, and up to 60k units by 2030, according to the newswire. It also aims to use the hydrogen fuel cell tech for heavy duty trucks, construction machines, and stationary fuel cells, Aoyama is quoted as saying.

DATA POINT #1- At least 5% of cars on Jordan’s streets are electric vehicles, Mohamad Khawaja, head of energy engineering at the German Jordanian University, told SciDevNet. In Egypt, some 3% of EnterpriseAM and Enterprise Climate readers said they own EVs. Jordan was the first country in the region to import EVs back in 2015, Khawaja said, adding that nearly a decade later, battery warranties are nearing expiration and EV owners still lack awareness about the proper disposal of potentially toxic and flammable batteries, he added. This poses an issue that should be addressed in Jordan’s policies on EVs, which as they stand, do not provide clear guidance for disposal procedures, Khawaja said.

DATA POINT #2- Dubai reached more than 620 operational electric vehicle charging stations across the emirate by the end of 2022, helping to encourage low-carbon vehicle use, according to a Wam statement. The emirate currently has 1.5k EVs and 13.5k hybrid cars on its roads.

WORTH READING- The emissions gap between social classes within individual countries is now greater than that between countries: Higher-income classes account for a much larger share of individual countries’ emissions than lower classes, according to a report (pdf) from the World Inequality Lab. The report, which tracked carbon emissions data across different countries and regions, found that the correlation between higher wealth and higher carbon emissions is applicable both within individual countries and when comparing countries or regional clusters to each other. However, while the disparity in the volume of emissions between countries across the world is substantial, overall inequality in global emissions can be better explained and understood by looking at inequalities within individual countries, the report suggests.

What does this mean? Governments must address these inequalities through more equitable domestic tax systems that can redistribute some of the windfalls of rich companies into projects that can help boost these countries’ clean energy transition, the report argues.

THE DANGER ZONE- Single-use plastic waste hit an all-time high in 2021 — and is likely to continue rising for a few more years: Some 6 mn tons of single-use plastic production — around the same weight as the Great Pyramid of Giza — has been added to the global volume of plastic waste in 2021, Australia’s Minderoo Foundation revealed in its 2023 Plastic Waste Makers Index (pdf). This brings total waste from single-use plastic in 2021 to a record 139 mn tonnes, which the report predicts will rise by another 17 mn tonnes by 2027. “The plastic waste crisis is intensifying and is going to get significantly worse before we see an absolute year-on-year decline in virgin single-use plastic consumption,” the report says.

Spotlight on oil and gas: The vast majority of single-use plastics are produced by oil, gas and petrochemical industries, the report notes, adding that those industries have made “little progress” to tackle the problem and boost recycling efforts.

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HAPPENING TODAY-

The International Association for Energy Economics’ International Conference is on its fourth day in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The five-day event wraps on Thursday.

Also in Riyadh: The Saudi International Marine Exhibition and Conference is on its penultimate day.

Meanwhile in Egypt, the one-day Cairo Forum for Sustainable Maritime Transportation Funds kicks off in Cairo today.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Egypt will host the CSR Forum from 2-5 March at Somabay, Hurghada. The event aims to further discussions put forth during COP27 and boost private and public sector cooperation on climate action. You can register for the event here.

The Arabia CSR Awards is accepting applications until Friday, 30 June. The awardwinners will be announced during a ceremony on Wednesday, 4 October.

The first MENA Solar Conference is accepting applications from published researchers specialized in PV technology until Sunday, 30 April. The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority will be hosting the conference from 15 to 18 November, in conjunction with the Water, Energy, Technology, and Environment Exhibition and the Dubai Solar Show 2023. Researchers can submit their papers here.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.