Good morning, friends. We have a relatively calm morning on the regional climate news front, but there’s a significant step forward on Aramco’s mega CCS hub and a basket of smaller updates from home and abroad. First, over in the EU…

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- Right-ward shift of EU parliament means shaky future for climate policy: The European parliament elections on Sunday saw gains made by right wing parties that are known to oppose the bloc’s environmental policies. With the bloc’s greenest elected group wiped out, the fate of new climate policies over the next five years is uncertain but experts expect the Green Deal to stay in motion albeit with weaker implementation. Given that all European laws presented by the European Commission are required to be approved by the European Parliament, the results are expected to impact the progress made towards achieving new zero emissions by 2050, especially as right wing parties recently showed strong opposition to the EU’s 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel cars.

The story made headlines in the international press: Reuters | Bloomberg | The New York Times | The Guardian | CNN | CNBC

HAPPENING TODAY-

Morocco Energy Week Summit will kick off today in Marrakech and run through to Thursday. The event will gather Morocco's leading energy players, companies and developers alongside financiers and implementation experts to discuss the country’s green transition.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- EBRD eyes major green hydrogen investment in Egypt: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering investing in a major green hydrogen project in Egypt next year, the bank's Egypt head Khaled Hamza told Al Arabiya. EBRD will announce its new cooperation with the Egyptian private sector in the field of electricity and energy production during an investment conference between Egypt and the EU scheduled for 29-30 June. No other details on the investment were provided.

Could this be for the Fertiglobe project? Egypt said it is getting an electrolyzer plant courtesy of the EBRD after the bank agreed to provide the Fertiglobe-Scatec-OC-SFE ammonia plant with a USD 80 mn loan in November 2022 to build a 100 MW electrolyzer facility powered by renewable energy. The loan came nearly a week after the companies began commissioning the first phase of the 100 MW green hydrogen plant. Upon completion, the facility will deliver up to 15k tons of green hydrogen annually.

Not the first time the European bank eyes Egypt’s hydrogen sector: EBRD and its subsidiary TotalEren signed an agreement for a 300k ton green ammonia facility in Ain Sokhna alongside SME investor Enara Capital in 2022.

EBRD is investing heavily in Egypt’s private energy sector: The bank is focused on the new and renewable energy sector in its investment strategy, especially through cooperation with private companies or financing local banks, Hamza added. Egypt’s Hassan Allam Utilities (HAU) subsidiary HAU Energy BV is raising capital to invest in local renewable energy projects via a partnership with EBRD and infrastructure-focused investment company Meridiam.

#2- Is Taqa’s acquisition of Naturgy dead? Abu Dhabi’s Taqa ended talks with Criteria Caixa over an acquisition of Spanish gas producer and renewables player Naturgy, in which Criteria is the largest shareholder, “without any agreement,” Criteria Caixa said in a filing (pdf) yesterday. The two companies were reportedly looking to “cooperate” on a potential acquisition. Criteria Caixa already owns a 26.7% stake in the company. It’s not clear whether Taqa could still acquire GIP or CVC’s stake in the company, despite the termination of talks between the company and Criteria Caixa.

BACKGROUND- Taqa has been in talks with Naturgy’s largest shareholders — CVC Capital Partners, Criteria Caixa, and Global Infrastructure Partners — to potentially acquire their stakes in the Spanish company.

The transaction was expected to hit resistance: The Spanish government — which is also preventing foreign ownership in “strategic” companies and industries — was reportedly looking to maintain a stake in Naturgy if the acquisition went through. The Algerian government was also reportedly considering blocking the transaction, to protect its stake in the company.

#3- UAE participates in Brics for the first time: UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan participated in the Brics Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Russia yesterday, marking the UAE’s first time attending the meeting, Wam reports.

Al Nahyan reiterated the need for collective action to address global issues — including climate change, sustainable development, and economic issues in less developed countries — during the meeting, and explored windows for economic integration within Brics in tourism, energy, industry, transport, education, and the blue economy. The minister also called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, alongside humanitarian aid delivery and the release of all hostages.

WORTH READING-

Synthesizing research on which policies are most effective is a key priority in climate science, researchers from the Mercator Research Institute in Berlin who are working on a comprehensive review of climate policies said, according to Nature. The initiative by Mercator aims to create an evidence bank that unifies scientific reviews to assess the impact of various climate policies around the world. This effort responds to the urgent need for clarity on which policies best reduce emissions and aid adaptation to global warming. The What Works Climate Solutions Summit in Berlin taking place this week will include a meeting gathering experts to discuss Mercator’s project.

Uses and challenges: The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) would benefit greatly from the evidence bank when preparing for its next assessment which is due by 2029. The IPCC has faced challenges in providing detailed insights into policy effectiveness due to the vast amount of climate literature — the researchers analyzed over 400k studies alone — that is growing without integrating evidence review and evaluation approaches. Mercator’s proposed method — which is inspired by medical research — would involve rigorous reviews of policies like carbon taxes and cleaner transport initiatives.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Spain will host the Connecting Green Hydrogen Europe conference from Tuesday, 25 June to Thursday, 27 June in Madrid. The event will see around 5k attendees including industry leaders, energy ministers, and executives to explore solutions, new technologies, and transformative advancements to advance the hydrogen industry.

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

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