TODAY: Kuwait’s EnerTech expands into the US + Biden appoints a new climate chief

Good morning, nice people. It’s a quiet (and very cold) morning on the climate front, but there’s big news on the US climate diplomacy front and significant moves being made by a Kuwaiti renewables player…

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- Biden appoints John Podesta as climate chief: Joe Biden has tapped his clean energy adviser John Podesta to take over as the US’s top climate diplomat, succeeding John Kerry who intends to step down by spring. Podesta currently serves as Biden’s clean energy advisor and is overseeing the clean energy subsidies rollout under the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act. He plans to continue his role as senior adviser within the White House instead of moving to the State Department.Earlier this month, Kerry and his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua reached an agreement to triple renewable energy capacity globally by 2030 and to include a broader array of greenhouse gasses — including methane — in their climate targets. Podesta is expected to continue overseeing critical talks between the US and China.

The news was widely picked up and grabbed ink across international outlets: Reuters | The Financial Times | The New York Times | The Washington Post | Bloomberg | CNN | The Guardian

WATCH THIS SPACE-

PIF may be getting a big cash injection: Saudi Aramco will reportedly move forward with stalled plans to list more shares on the Tadawul as it seeks to raise at least SAR 40 bn (USD 10 bn) in proceeds from the offering, Bloomberg reports, citing people with knowledge of the matter. The idea of selling more shares first surfaced in 2021, when Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman said the government would sell more shares in the oil giant, with proceeds earmarked for the Public Investment Fund (PIF).

#1- US, EU holding on to battery mineral trade deal despite failed talks: The US and EU are still moving forward with talks to establish a transatlantic marketplace for minerals and other battery components after negotiations stalled on Tuesday, Reuters reports, citing the EU’s top trade official. The EU has expressed reservations over the US Inflation Reduction Act, as it provides tax credits for clean energy projects in the US, possibly diverting projects from Europe. Both parties are scheduled to resume talks at their sixth meeting this April in Belgium.

#2- AfDB sells its maiden hybrid capital note: The African Development Bank (AfDB) has sold its inaugural USD 750 mn hybrid capital note — the first financing instrument of its kind for multilateral development banks — at a 5.75% coupon rate, tightened from initial guidance of 6.375%, Reuters reports. AfDB had postponed the launch of the hybrid note since September amid rising borrowing costs and market instability, but now says it has the capacity to list some USD 4-5 bn worth of hybrid capital bonds.

What are hybrid notes? The notes are subordinated, debt-like equity instruments with lower credit ratings than AfDB’s AAA-rated bonds and can be redeemed by investors after 10.5 years or every five years afterwards, the newswire explains. The terms of the note allow for a permanent writedown if AfDB is facing stress and needs capital injections from shareholders, and coupon installments can be skipped.

#3- The EU solar industry lobbies for emergency support: The European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) is calling for emergency measures to help alleviate oversupply and price pressure created by a flood of Chinese solar panel imports, Reuters reports. In a letter to EU Commission, the industry called on state aid programme reform for EU developers and lobbied the government to offtake excess inventories to help ease oversupply, warning that the bloc could lose half of its photovoltaic (PV) production capacity over the next four to eight weeks if prompt action is not taken. If the EU cannot quickly enact emergency support, ESMC recommended “safeguard” measures including tariffs and quotes to reduce Chinese panel imports.

An ongoing problem: Several European PV developers have announced plans to shutter factories in recents months, among them Switzerland's Meyer Burger, which saidit would have to terminate operations at its Germany plant earlier this month if it does not receive promised state funding. The EU installed a record 56 GW of renewable energy last year and has a target to generate 750 GW of renewable energy by 2030, Reuters notes.

REMEMBER- China dominates the global PV industry: The countryalready has a monopoly over global solar panel supply chains with a market share of solar manufacturing products exceeding 80% as of 2022, and is expected to capture 95% of the market by next year. In our neck of the woods, Chinese solar giant LONGi is looking to establish a solar panel manufacturing facility with a 50 GW cell capacity, and last year signed an agreement with KSA’s Public Investment Fund covering the local manufacture of solar PV products in Saudi Arabia.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Egypt will host the Egypt Energy Show from Monday, 19 February to Wednesday, 21 February in Cairo. The event will gather 35k energy industry professionals and host over 80 conferences on energy transition and sustainable production.

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.

Saudi Arabia will host the International Conference on Sand and Dust Storms in theArabian Peninsula from Monday, 4 March to Wednesday, 6 March in Riyadh. The conference will address regional challenges caused by sand and dust storms and discuss monitoring systems, mitigation strategies, economic and infrastructural impacts, and more.

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