TODAY: More Acwa Power solar on deck + SPWC opens tender for more desalination plants

Good morning, nice people. The news cycle remains eerily quiet as we slide into the weekend, with just a couple of stories making blips in the headlines…

OUR TOP CLIMATE STORY- Acwa Power received the commercial operation certificate to begin operating the third and final phase of its 1.5 GW Sudair solar project.

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

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- Iberdrola calls off USD 8.3 bn acquisition of rival PNM: Avangrid, the US arm of Spanish renewables giant Iberdrola, has called off plans for a USD 8.3 bn takeover over of New Mexico-headquartered energy holding company PNM Resources after failing to secure regulatory approvals. The deal would have seen Avangrid acquire both PNM and its two utilities — Public Service Co. of New Mexico and Texas New Mexico Power — at a USD 4.3 bn investment ticket, excluding debt. The merger was unanimously approved by PNM's board in 2020 and was aimed at establishing a renewable energy operator with a combined market value exceeding USD 20 bn, paving the way for Avangrid to capitalize on New Mexico’s wind and solar energy potential.

The story grabbed some ink in the international press:Financial Times | Reuters | Bloomberg | The Washington Post | AP News

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Germany + Portugal made strides in renewable energy last year: Portugal hit a record of sourcing 61% of its electricity needs from renewable energy in 2023, up from 49% in 2022, Reuters reports, citing grid operator REN. The country is targeting an 85% share of energy generation from renewables by 2030. Germany's renewable energy share also rose to 55% in 2023, a 6.6 percentage point increase from the year before, Reuters writes. Offshore wind contributed 31.1%, solar 12.1%, biomass 8.4%, and 3.4% was from hydropower and other renewables. Germany aims to source 80% of its energy from renewables by 2030.

#2- Energy efficiency investments are outshining renewables: Global asset managers including KKR & Co, Blackstone, and Brookfield are sidestepping investments in renewables projects and are instead earmarking bns of USD toward financing ventures in the energy efficiency sector, Bloomberg writes. While many developers are eying development projects in the downstream renewable energy industry, increasing power prices — even for wind and solar energy on the back of high interest rates and global supply chain disruptions — are seeing financiers ‘narrowly focused’ on the mostly untapped energy-efficiency investment market, Bloomberg quotes industry players as saying.

Why the turn? The global energy efficiency market currently stands at some USD 310 bn annually and investments are intincing in the wake of the energy crunch exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine war, prompting consumers to streamline operations and identify energy slashing pockets, Bloomberg notes. The global industrial energy efficiency market is poised to reach USD 41.21 bn by the end of the decade.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Qatar will host The International Conference on Smart Grid and Renewable Energy is kicking off Tuesday, 9 January through to Friday, 12 January in Doha. The conference will explore smart grid and renewable energy resources and related technologies. Look for discussion of power electronics, controls, manufacturing, communications, and computational intelligence.

Saudi Arabia will host the Future Minerals Forum from Tuesday, 9 January through to Thursday, 11 January in Riyadh. The event will focus on resource-rich regions of Africa, Western Asia, and Central Asia and will include a ministerial roundtable with over 60 countries being represented. A parallel exhibition will have some 150 exhibitors and industry sponsors on site.

The UAE will host the Management and Sustainability of Water Resources Conference from Monday, 26 February to Wednesday 28 February in Dubai. Water availability in arid and semiarid regions, global water issues, and future water and environmental challenges are all on the agenda.

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