Good morning, nice people. The news cycle has picked up as the week comes to a close, with big news from Egypt and KSA’s Acwa Power. Let’s jump right in.

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY- UK private equity giant Actis is expected to submit a binding offer to acquire the state-owned 580 MW Gabal El Zeit wind farm within “the coming days” after wrapping up its due diligence, a source at the Electricity Ministry told Enterprise.

^^ We have the details on this story and more in the news well, below.

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- Greta charged with public order offense in London: Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has been charged with a public order offense for obstructing the entrance to the Energy Intelligence Forum – formerly known as Oil and Money conference — on Monday and failing to comply with UK police’s section 14 order, which was meant to avert “serious disruption to the community, hotel and guests.” London’s metropolitan police claim they asked the demonstrators to stop blocking the road leading to the hotel and hold their protest on the pavement, but Thunberg along with 26 other protesters failed to do so. Thunberg has been released on bail with a trial set for 15 November.

The story made headlines in the international press yesterday: Washington Post | Reuters France 24 | BBC | Bloomberg | The Guardian | Euronews

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OVER IN COPLAND- The EU Council has approved its stance on climate finance ahead of COP28, according to a statement summarizing the outcome (pdf) of the proceedings. The Council underlines its strong commitment to delivering on climate finance, including helping mobilize the overdue USD 100 bn per year in climate finance this year. It also calls upon private actors to align their financial flows with the goals of the Paris Agreement, and urges partners from all regions in a position to do so to expand their support, recognising the need for a wide variety of sources to close the identified priority gaps in the existing funding landscape. The Council is inviting multilateral development banks, development banks, and other development finance institutions and export credit agencies to phase out financing of fossil fuel energy sector projects “as soon as possible” and additionally requests that the European Commission provide an overview of international climate finance flows from the EU for the year 2022, including from its member countries and the European Investment Bank.

ALSO- COP28 releases climate and health declaration: The UAE’s COP28 presidency is calling on governments worldwide to endorse the summit's Declaration on Climate and Health launched yesterday on the sidelines of the World Health Summit in Berlin, Wam reports. The declaration — developed in partnership with the World Health Organization — covers a range of areas including “cross-sector collaboration on climate and health, reducing emissions within the health sector, and increasing the amount and proportion of climate financing devoted to health,” the news outlet says. Kenya, Fiji, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Malawi were announced as “early endorsers” of the Declaration. COP28 will be the first COP to dedicate a day to health.

AND COMING SOON- RVCMC will host a conference on carbon market developments ahead of the summit: The PIF-backed Regional Voluntary Carbon Market Company (RVCMC) will host a conference on carbon market developments in the Global South to discuss and agree on a list of actions ahead of the COP28, according to a statement. The conference will be held in Riyadh next week on 26 October as part of the Future Investment Initiative summit and will host discussions on the sovereignty of carbon credits in the Global South, how carbon markets can stimulate climate action, regulatory mechanisms that can mitigate risk and support the scaling of global carbon markets, and the role of Islamic Finance in developing global carbon markets.

RVCMC is getting busy: RCVMC — established by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund and the Saudi Tadawul Group with SAR 500 mn of capital — plans to launch its carbon trading exchange in the second half of next year. The platform is “going to be a spot market to help price discovery by 2024,” and will have “over-the-counter trading and a marketplace for suppliers to sell their own products,” CEO Riham ElGizy said earlier this week. The regional voluntary carbon credits market (VCM) could see CO2 trading of 100-150 mn tons by the end of the decade, ElGizy added. Earlier in June, RVCMC sold 2 mn tons of carbon credits in what the company described as the largest-ever voluntary carbon credit auction.

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WATCH THIS SPACE #1- Shell is changing up its net zero approach: Oil and gas giant Shell’s CEO Wael Sawan says his company remains committed to zero emissions by 2050, but will change its approach to achieving its planned carbon neutrality to go in line with its “ruthless” focus on performance, Bloomberg writes, referencing statements made by Sawan at the Energy Intelligence Forum. Shell has made “tough choices” on which renewables projects the company would fund as part of the new approach, without specifying the changes and the clean energy projects the company is currently eying, Sawan said. “For avoidance of doubt, what hasn’t changed is the destination that we have set for ourselves. What has changed is the pathway we’re going to get there,” Sawan said, adding that response from his shareholders on this strategy has so far been “very, very positive.” Shell has shelved plans to slash oil production each year, saying it would keep oil output steady until 2030, with plans to extend its advantaged position upstream to achieve cashflow longevity by stabilizing liquids production to 2030.

REMEMBER- Shell plans to invest USD 10-15 bn until 2025 to support the development of low-carbon energy solutions. The company said these solutions include biofuels, hydrogen, electric vehicle charging, and carbon capture storage. The company said it is committed to achieving near-zero methane emissions by 2030 and ending routine flaring from its upstream operations by 2025.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Saudi Arabia will host the Future Investment Initiative from Tuesday, 24 October to Thursday, 26 October in Riyadh. The three-day event will bring together state leaders, policymakers, executives, academics, NGOs, entrepreneurs, and scientists to host panels on how to scale green technologies, mining, AI’s role in the energy revolution, and how geoeconomics will impact critical minerals, the program (pdf) outlines.

Cairo Water Week is taking place from Sunday, 29 October to Thursday, 2 November. This year’s event will focus on global green developments in the water sector with sessions discussing the development of scientific solutions, practical tools, policies, and concrete measures to overcome today’s water challenges. The five-day event is organized by Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, in partnership with the EU and FAO.

The UAE will host the Forbes Middle East Sustainability Leaders Summit from Wednesday, 1 November to Saturday, 3 November in Abu Dhabi. The summit will gather international leaders in sustainability, technology, finance, and policy to drive green strategies globally. The agenda includes sessions on climate-smart cities, green mobility, sustainable finance, and sustainable tourism. The summit is expected to set the tone for international and regional dialogue and decision-making, including COP28 which will kick off in late November.

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