Good morning, ladies and gents. The climate news cycle remains calm as we near the weekend, but we have a couple of big stories making headlines this morning.

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY- Orascom Investment Holding is exploring investments in Uzbekistan’s renewables and the hospitality sector, as part of a USD 1.2 bn investment plan discussed by OIH Chairman Naguib Sawiris during a meeting with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to “implement large investment projects” in the Central Asian country. Closer to home, the First Abu Dhabi Bank is set to raise c.USD 600 mn from a fresh five-year green bond issuance at 95 basis points (bps) above US Treasuries.

^^ We have the details on these stories and more in the news well, below.

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- The UN’s Net Zero Ins. Alliance loses a fifth of its members in a week: UK ins. firm Lloyd’s of London joined ins. giants QBE Ins., Allianz, AXA, SCOR, and SOMPO Holdings in their withdrawal from world’s largest climate association for ins. companies, the UN’s Net Zero Ins. Alliance — a subunit of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero. The group warned that political attacks from US lawmakers on antitrust concerns would drive more exits from the climate alliance. The UN-backed ins. coalition held an emergency meeting last week after Zurich-based reins. firm Zurich RE, Hannover Re, Zurich Ins. Group, and Munich RE withdrew from the group. While Zurich RE said the reason for its departure was to focus on helping its clients transition to a low carbon economy, Munich Re explicitly noted antitrust concerns led to its withdrawal from the climate alliance. The exits are drawing skepticism among industry leaders on the utility of voluntary industry associations aiming to slash carbon output.

The story made the rounds in the international press yesterday: Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times

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WATCH THIS SPACE #1- Oman wants in on Egypt’s green hydrogen bonanza: The Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has reportedly begun talks with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) and Egypt’s Electricity Ministry to explore developing a large-scale green hydrogen project in the country, Attaqa reported on Monday, citing people it says have knowledge of the matter. The sources estimated the project’s cost at USD 3-5 bn, and discussions are still underway over the potential project’s site, which could be in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone). The Omani sovereign wealth fund and the Egyptian government could disclose more details about the project when it is officially announced before the end of 3Q 2023, the sources added.

REMEMBER- The Egyptian government signed several framework agreements during COP27 with foreign companies to construct several green hydrogen and ammonia facilities in the SCZone. The facilities would cost a combined USD 83 bn and collectively produce up to 7.6 mn tons of green ammonia and 2.7 mn tons of hydrogen a year. Egypt also approved incentives earlier this month to boost the country’s green hydrogen sector and lure in much-needed foreign exchange inflows.

OIA’s not just interested in hydrogen: Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power signed an MoU with OIA on the sidelines of COP27 last year to discuss bringing in OIA as an investor for Egypt’s 1.1 GW Suez Wind Energy project. Under the terms of the agreement, OIA will assess the possibility of owning up to 10% of the USD 1.5 bn project. The project is slated to be the largest single contracted wind farm in the Middle East upon completion in 2026.

ALSO- Oman’s state-owned Hydrom will sign agreements for the Phase A in Round 1 of its planned green hydrogen projects on 1 June, Zawya reports. Hydrom will ink several MoUs for the first phase of its planned green hydrogen plants and sign an agreement for the usufruct of concession plots in Duqm where the projects will be located with Oman’s Energy and Minerals Ministry and Housing and Urban Planning Ministry. Back in March, Hydrom signed six binding term sheet agreements worth a combined USD 20 bn with several regional and international developers for the production of green hydrogen. The company plans to invest USD 140 bn by 2050 to meet its target of generating between 7.5-8.5 mn tons of green hydrogen annually by mid-century.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Saudi Arabia will host the Arab-Chinese Business Conference on 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.

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