UK’s Envorem to provide oil sludge cleaning tech to KSA: London-based oil sludge treatment technology provider Envorem is supplying Saudi-based waste management company Greenland Environmental Services with its oil cleaning technology, according to a statement. The yet-to-be-patented technology combines existing methods with hydraulic shock and cavitation — a process where vapor pockets are formed and collapsed rapidly in low pressure spots of flowing liquid — to separate the oil from sludge or oil-contaminated soil left over from production. The tech cleans the solids and recovers the entrained oil without generating emissions, reducing the need for extraction while decreasing emissions from disposal.

A successful pilot in Oman + Kuwait: Envorem completed a pilot of its technology for Oman’s National Oil Company (PDO) last March, successfully removing 99.96% of the oil from sludge and soil, according to their website. Tests on samples of weathered sand provided by the Kuwait Oil Company also revealed a treatment rate that is 10x better than the standard required. Envorem concluded from the pilot that if the value of recovered oil is included, costs are potentially net positive, which would provide a financial incentive to use the technology.

Hyundai is providing Neom with substation equipment: South Korea’s HD Hyundai Electric — shipbuilding giant HD Hyundai’s electrical equipment and energy subsidiary — has been selected by Al Gihaz Contracting to supply Saudi Arabia’s Neom with substation equipment under a CNY 67.8 bn (USD 51 mn) contract, the Korea Economic Daily reports. The Korean company will provide transformers, high-voltage circuit breakers, and reactors for the local power company’s substation project — called Neom Mountain — by February 2025.

BACKGROUND- The Saudi Electricity Company awarded Riyadh-based Al Gihaz Contracting a SAR 744 mn (c.USD 198.3 mn) contract to develop the 380/132 KV gas insulated substation for Neom Mountain last month. Gas insulated substations switch, separate, transform, measure and distribute electrical energy in power systems. GE Grid Solution — a renewables arm of General Electric — was selected in June as the supplier of three 380 kV T155 gas-insulated substations needed for Neom’s USD 8.4 bn green hydrogen plant.

Cloud-seeding tests are happening in the UAE: The UAE is planning to conduct a total of 40 cloud-seeding flight hours in a month-long campaign, director of UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science (UAEREP) Alya Almazroui told the Khaleej Times in an interview. “The Cloudix campaign will use National Center of Meteorology (NCM) cloud-seeding aircraft and an instrumented Learjet aircraft operated by US-based Stratton Park Engineering Company. Each mission is usually between two to three hours in duration,” Almazroui said. The flights target evaluating the effectiveness of several innovative cloud-seeding methods in increasing rain and determining which technique is best.

How it’s done: Cloud seeding tries to make it rain or snow by putting substances that help water molecules stick together (like silver iodide) into clouds — either by spraying it from a plane or shooting it up from earth. Programs in China and the US show precipitation can increase as much as 10-30% when it works.

REMEMBER- The UAE had set up a research center to support new tech developments in the field. The center has funded 11 projects with over AED 65.7 mn (USD 18 mn) in investments, including one focused on the use of nanotechnology to develop cloud seeding materials.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

  • Another waste treatment push in Oman: Oman’s Be’ah has signed an agreement with cargo terminal operator SATS to treat industrial and hazardous waste under the Omani government's efforts to ensure a safe and sustainable environment. (Twitter)
  • A step forward for Tunisia’s EV charging: Tunisia’s Agency for Energy Management has opened its first photovoltaic charging station for EVs with support from battery manufacturer ASSAD, carmaker BYD, Tunisian PV panel manufacturer Alphanis, and solar panel installer Sun Solution. (Tunis Afrique Presse)
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