TODAY: Infinity Power Holding + Germany’s Conjuncta team up on mega green hydrogen plant in West Africa
Good morning, wonderful people. We have a hefty issue this morning packed with regional updates. Let’s dive right in.
THE BIG CLIMATE STORY- A global consortium comprising our friends at Infinity Power Holding — a JV between Egypt’s Infinity and UAE’s Masdar — and Germany’s Conjuncta have signed a MoU to build up a mega green hydrogen plan in Mauritania. We have all the details on this story and more in the news well, below.
HAPPENING NEXT WEEK- The German-Arab Chamber of Industry and Commerce will hold its first high-level committee meeting in Cairo on Sunday 12, March to discuss cooperation in renewables and green hydrogen. Egypt’s Oil Minister Tarek El Molla, Electricity and Renewable Energy Minister Mohamed Shaker, International Cooperation Minister Rania Al Mashat, and Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Stefan Wenzel will be attending the meeting.
THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- Denmark kicks off commercial operations for subsea carbon capture project: Denmark brought online a subsea carbon capture project with a storage capacity of 15k tons in collaboration with UK chemicals company INEOS Group Holdings and german oil producer Wintershall Dea AG. The carbon storage facility — located in the North Sea at a depleted oilfield off the coast of Denmark — sequesters carbon some 2 kilometers below the seabed. The consortium developing the project will make a final decision within 18 months whether or not to increase the facility’s yearly storage capacity to 1.5 mn tons, and potentially 8 mn tons of CO2 by 2030 if the pilot and the second phase prove successful. Denmark is earmarking EUR 1.1 bn for carbon capture and storage projects. The story was picked up by Reuters, Washington Post, and Bloomberg.
WATCH THIS SPACE #1- COP transitional committee is zoning in on COP27’s landmark loss + damage fund: The first meeting of the COP transitional committee set to take place before the end of his month will look into “the right formulation” for the loss and damage fund that threatened to leave negotiations in Sharm El Sheikh deadlocked, Egypt’s lead climate negotiator Mohamed Nasr said in a virtual press conference attended by Enterprise Climate. He said he expects L&D to be operational by the end of the year. “We’ll get a sense [on when it could be implemented] during the first meeting of the transitional committee,” he said.
Should wealthy developing countries pay up? That’s not the way to look at it, Nasr argues. “What is important is that there are funding arrangements that can deliver rather than a [sole] focus on how much contributors will pay,” he said.
The 1.5°C warming goal should not be left to die: The ambitious global warming limit is still necessary given the severe climate catastrophes seen “while we’re only still at 1.2°C,” Nasr said. “It’s achievable if the right ingredients are in place,” he added, with those including necessary funds, technologies and others. Nasr also spoke on the controversy related to phasing out of dirtier fossil fuels, arguing that raising renewables share in the energy mix — rather than a full phasing out of the dirty fuel — could be a more realistic option.
Hand-in-hand with the UAE: The COP27 presidency is working with counterparts of COP28 host UAE to build up joint understandings on climate goals. “This step to build up on precious COPs is important to ensure continuation,” he said.
WATCH THIS SPACE #2– The EU will establish a new authority for minerals: The European Union could launch a central agency to buy essential energy transition minerals including cobalt, lithium, and manganese on behalf of the entire bloc as part of its Critical Raw Minerals Act, a draft of which was seen by Reuters. The EU has a target to produce 10% of its mineral demands by 2030 in a bid to eliminate its dependence on China, which currently supplies 95% of the global supply, the newswire notes.
The details: The new European Critical Raw Materials Board would streamline permitting procedures for investors looking to launch mining projects in the bloc, and would provide financing for projects it deems strategic, according to Reuters. Under the proposed law, the agency would grant permits for companies looking to undertake mining projects within 24 months, with the deadline for minerals processing projects set at 12 months, the newswire notes. The CRMA draft is set to be released next Tuesday, 14 March.
WATCH THIS SPACE #3– Italy backs the thumbs down on EU combustion engine ban: Italy welcomed the postponement of the Tuesday EU vote to terminate the sale of fossil fuel-powered vehicles by 2035 after Germany backtracked on February’s pre-agreed target, Bloomberg reports. Italian Energy Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin — who said his country would vote against the bill last month — said “electric cars cannot be the only solution for the future,” Reuters reports. Germany generates some EUR 411 bn per annum as Europe’s top automaker, Bloomberg notes, and has been lobbying for a flexible approach that would not see an outright prohibition of fuel-powered cars.
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CLIMATE DIPLOMACY- Egypt, US discuss energy transition and curbing emissions: Egyptian Oil Minister Tarek El Molla and US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm met to discuss the energy transition and emissions reduction on the sidelines of CERAWeek, according to a statement. The two parties addressed potential bilateral cooperation and US technical support to help fossil fuel production facilities enhance carbon reduction and environmental sustainability.
COME TO OUR NEXT ENTERPRISE FORUM-
We are delighted to share with you that the Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum will be taking place on 15 May at the Four Seasons Hotel at Nile Plaza in Cairo.
DO YOU WANT TO ATTEND? The first wave of invites is going out soon. If you’re a C-suite exec, exporter, investor, official, banker, or someone who should be part of the conversation, please click here to request a spot at this exclusive event.
What’s the Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum? It is the latest in our series of must-attend, invitation-only gatherings for C-suite-level business leaders. The Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum will discuss the critical topics of exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) in Egypt.
We will be taking an in-depth look into some of the most vital industry topics, including:
- How to effectively break into new export markets
- How to leverage domestic trends in order to create export opportunities
- What foreign investors are looking for
- What the government's role should be
Why now? Exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) have never been more important to Egypt’s economy — or businesses — than in the wake of the float of the EGP. We think we have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to build an export-led economy that makes Egypt a magnet for FDI, and all the benefits that will come with it.
Think of the Enterprise Exports & FDI Forum as a hands-on lab for how to turn the devaluation of the EGP into something that will turbocharge your company and our economy.
WANT TO SHARE YOUR STORY ON STAGE? Drop a note to Patrick here and let’s talk.
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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-
Oman will host Oman Sustainability Week from 12-16 March in Muscat. The event aims to create discourse amongst leaders to drive change, and movement within businesses and communities towards adopting a sustainable lifestyle.
The UAE will host the Arab Aviation Summit from 14-16 March in Ras al Khaimah. The event will bring together global stakeholders to address sustainability in the aviation industry among other topics.
Germany will host The Infrastructure Investor Global Summit from 20-24 March in Berlin. The four-day event will gather industry leaders from the global infrastructure sector to map out a course for the industry to upscale its ESG-focused operations and investments. 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.