Zhero has a North African green hydrogen plant in the pipeline: London-headquartered renewables firm Zhero — co-founded by former Acwa Power executive Paddy Padmanathan — has started work on four green hydrogen plants, Zawya reports, quoting comments made by Padmanathan on a webinar organized by Project Finance International. Two of the plants are located in Northern and Southern Africa and the other two are located in the US, and will have a 100-200k yearly production capacity. Padmanathan did not disclose the African countries where the plants are based, nor did he give a timeline on the projects’ completion. Two of the four projects currently in the works will be focused on green ammonia production, with the remaining facilities planned to focus on green hydrogen generation, he noted.

Orascom and BluEV to electrify Egypt’s light transportation: Orascom Investment has signed a strategic partnership agreement with BluEV through which the two companies will convert two and three-wheeled vehicles to electric models, Zawya reports. Using Orascom’s resources and BluEV’s digital platform that manages smart battery replacement stations, this partnership aims to enable light transportation drivers to switch to e-vehicles. BluEV stations sell light e-vehicles with installment plans and their conversion centers can convert traditional motorcycles into e-bikes.

And they’ll include perks: By registering on the platform, clients can rent rechargeable smart lithium-ion batteries or exchange used batteries with fully-charged ones at BluEV’s stations, which saves charging time, according to Zawya.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

• Morocco dropped 16 places in a ranking of 62 countries rating their attractiveness for mining policies. The kingdom plummeted from 2nd place due to investors’ concerns over the uncertainty of enforcing regulations. (Report, pdf)
• 16 companies from India, China, Italy, and France have signaled interest in submitting bids for an 80 MW solar energy project in Algeria’s El Guerrara municipality. The submission of tenders and the opening of bids for projects that are planned to produce from 80 to 220 MW each are scheduled for 29 May.(Attaqa)
• Abu Dhabi-based Emirates Water and Electricity Company has opened registration to participate in its Q2 Clean Energy Certificates auction which will take place on 14 June. (Statement)
• UAE renewables player Masdar signed an agreement with Austrian oil and gas group OMV to jointly explore opportunities of collaboration in renewable energy and green hydrogen initiatives. (Twitter)