RECYCLING-

UAE’s Utico will start recycling desalination waste water: UAE's private utility provider Utico partnered with China's Shandong Tianyi Chemical Corporation on a JV to extract industrial chemicals from desalination plant’s discarded brine, according to a statement. The project — which has a AED 160 mn investment ticket — will be the first in the GCC to recycle seawater waste from desalination plants. The company will extract bromine and deeply processed hydrobromic acid from discarded concentrated seawater waste from Utico’s desalination plants and produce chemicals that can be used for industrial uses locally or be exported.

GREEN MOBILITY-

Saudi’s first hydrogen train gets a trial operating license: Saudi Transport and Logistics Minister Saleh bin Nasser Al Jasser and TGA President Rumaih bin Mohammed Al Rumaih have issued a trial operating license to Saudi Arabia Railways for the hydrogen train, SPA reports. The hydrogen train operates with zero carbon emissions, supports the sustainability of rail transportation, and falls in line with reducing carbon emissions by 25% by 2030, the news outlet reports.

SOLAR-

Egypt’s Smart Solar is planning an African expansion: Egypt-based solar solutions company Smart Solar is looking to expand its operations into five new African markets next year, the company’s Chairman Osama Kamal told Al Mal in an interview. The company is eying investments in Sudan, Chad, Sierra Leone, Libya, and Tunisia, Kamal said. Smart Solar — which builds about 150 solar plants monthly for agriculture sector players — is currently developing 10 solar projects in Egypt’s New Valley in a bid to help sustainable irrigation in the country, Kamal said, without noting the combined generation capacity of the solar farms.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

• Oriental Weavers taps into clean energy: Egypt-based giant carpet and rug company Oriental Weavers has signed an agreement with Amarenco Solarize to supply one of its factories with solar energy. The project will have a 1.3 MWp capacity and reduce carbon emissions by 2.3k tons annually. (Zawya)
• Wize drums up funding: UAE's greentech startup Wize has raised USD 16 mn in a pre-seed funding round to enhance last-mile delivery. The company’s electric motorcycles can help businesses reduce transportation costs by up to 30% monthly. (Statement)