Good morning, friends. It’s another very busy start to the week with updates flooding in across all parts of the region and climate sector. Before we dive in, here’s big EV news brewing abroad…

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- Xiaomi launches its new EV: China’s smartphone giant Xiaomi has succeeded where Apple failed, introducing The SU7 over the weekend. The EV takes a lot of its styling cues from Porsche and prices start at USD 4k less than Tesla’s Model 3 with longer, 700-km range for the standard model. The company warned prospective buyers they could wait up to seven months to get their hands on a vehicle reflecting strong demand. The price of the Pro and Max models go for around CNY 245k and CNY 300k. Customers lined up for test drives until 3am on launch day, Car News China reports, and the 2024 production run sold out in just 24 hours — some 120k units were ordered in the first day and a half it was on sale, one report suggests. Xiaomi is also said to be readying a mid-to-large size electric SUV for introduction later this year.

REMEMBER- Xiaomi’s SU7 has three e-motors available, with the HyperEngine V8s achieving a global record maximum speed of 27.2k rpm, 425 kW output, and 635N·m peak torque.

The story grabbed headlines in the international press: Reuters | AP | Bloomberg | The Financial Times | The Wall Street Journal | CNN | CNBC

ON THE TOPIC OF CHINESE EVS- Janet Yellen is stirring the pot with China on the eve of her second trip to Beijing as US treasury secretary. Yellen warned Beijing against dumping key components of the global green economy on other markets, claiming China is dumping excess production of solar panels, EVs, and lithium ion batteries on other countries. She said the practice “distorts global prices and production patterns and hurts American firms and workers, as well as firms and workers around the world.”

The story grabbed many headlines last week: Reuters | Bloomberg | AP | CNBC | The Financial Times | The New York Times | The Washington Post

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Egypt’s cabinet unveils new hydrogen company initiative: Egypt’s cabinet has approved a new decree allowing the new Hydrogen Company to operate under the special free zone system at two locations within the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), according to a statement(pdf) published on Saturday. The move aims to enhance the management, operation, and maintenance of electrolyzers and green hydrogen production stations and their fuel derivatives. The two sites will span 31k sqm and 30k sqm respectively. Egypt has been rolling out green hydrogen incentives for companies in a bid to provide 5-8% of the world’s hydrogen and reduce annual carbon emissions by 40 mn tons by 2040, creating some 100k jobs and adding USD 10-18 bn to GDP in the process.

IN OTHER SCZONE NEWS- The zone’s board of directors has given the greenlight for a green fuel trade corridor connecting it to the Dutch Port of Rotterdam, according to a statement released on Saturday. The SCZone approved an MoU to support the export of green fuels such as green hydrogen and ammonia to European markets. The agreement will see the SCZone and the Port of Rotterdam work on the green bunkering corridor linking Singapore to Rotterdam through the Suez Canal, creating the first corridor for green bunkering between Asia, Africa, and Europe.

REMEMBER- Egypt has “tremendous” potential to export cheap green fuels, Deputy Director at Port of Amsterdam Mark Hoolwerf told Enterprise Climate in September. The Port of Amsterdam is in talks with Egyptian producers with planned green hydrogen projects given that Egypt is one of the countries with the highest potential to deliver cheap green fuels in comparison to some of the other countries attributable to Egypt’s geographical position, proximity to export markets like the EU, and its efficient renewable energy resources, Hoolwerf added.

#2- UAE mulls nuclear investments in Europe: The UAE has reportedly held talks with the UK, among other European countries, to explore potential investments in the continent’s nuclear power infrastructure, Reuters reported on Friday, citing sources with knowledge of the matter. State-owned Emirates Nuclear Energy Company (Enec) is reportedly looking into becoming a minority investor in European nuclear power assets as part of the company’s goal to expand internationally without managing or operating their investments. The UK is currently seeking investment in a nuclear project being built by French Energy company EDF as part of its commitment to triple global nuclear capacity by 2050, which the UAE also signed off to during COP28 in December.

REMEMBER- The UK government reportedly approached Abu Dhabi investors about funding the development of the Sizewell C nuclear facility in Suffolk, The Times reported last year.

IN OTHER UAE NEWS- EV markets are poised for growth throughout the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Al Futtaim Electric Mobility Director Hasan Nergiz told Bloomberg in an interview (watch, runtime: 06:29) on Thursday. Nergiz highlighted the growing consumer sentiment particularly in Saudi Arabia where roughly 80% of customers are willing to consider EVs in their next automobile purchase.

And Emirates is set to begin SAF flights: UAE’s Emirates began implementing its agreement with Neste to supply over 2 mn gallons of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) for its flights departing from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport throughout this year, according to a statement published last week. The SAF blend, fully integrated into Amsterdam Schiphol’s refueling system, will comprise 1 mn gallons of pure SAF. Emirates and Neste also plan to introduce SAF at Singapore Changi Airport in the coming months.

We knew this was coming: Emirates signed an offtake agreement with Neste for 3 mn gallons of blended sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to fuel upcoming flights from Schiphol last October. The Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc) also signed an MoU with Neste to explore avenues for the purchase and supply of SAF both in the UAE and the wider MENA region in November.

#3- Amea advances its 500 MW solar plant in Egypt: UAE’s Amea Power has completed a 33/220kV substation building structure at its 500 MW Abydos solar plant in Egypt, according to a statement last week. The solar plant — which secured funding in December 2022 — is scheduled to be completed in the middle of this year, and is being constructed under a build-own-operate (BOO) framework. Amea Power secured USD 500 mn in debt and equity funding for the solar plant from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Dutch development bank FMO and Japan International Cooperation Agency.

Progress made at other sites: Amea installed the first wind turbine at its 500 MW Amunet wind project in the Gulf of Suez earlier this month, according to a statement. The wind project — which also received USD 500 mn from the Japanese Bank for International Cooperation, the IFC, and three commercial banks at the same time as the Abydos solar plant — will have 77 wind turbines installed by China’s Envision Energy, with a capacity of 6.5 MW each. The plant was initially sized at 505 MW, and is scheduled to be completed by mid-2025.

SPEAKING OF TURBINES- Chinese turbine manufacturers expanded dominance in 2023: China’s wind turbine manufacturers made up four out of the top five producers in 2023 — up from last year two spots for Chinese firms, Bloomberg reported last week. Goldwind Science & Technology remains the leader, while Envision Energy has surpassed Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems. The report highlights that while Chinese manufacturers are expanding internationally, they still heavily depend on domestic sales, which account for approximately 98% of their total deployments. The surge is attributed to the country’s renewable installation boom, which contrasts with the decline in the US and a modest growth in Europe.

#4- The proposedtrade agreement between the EU and the Mercosur bloc is a “very bad” one that fails to address crucial environmental concerns, French President Emmanuel Macron said in speech while on a three-day trip to Brazil. The agreement lacks of measures for biodiversity and climate change in the negotiations, Macron added, and French farmers have expressed objections to the possibility of allowing agricultural imports that don’t adhere to stringent EU standards. The agreement is still under negotiations, with both sides still having time to revise its conditions, Brazil’s Finance Minister Fernando Haddad stated. The EU already has a standing trade agreement with the Mercosur bloc.

IN OTHER EU NEWS- 20 EU nations led by Austria have requested that Brussels water down or suspend the bloc’s deforestation law, citing concerns that it would harm farmers and disrupt agricultural supply chains, Reuters reported last week. The new legislation — which bans the import and sale of products that come from deforested lands — was put forth by the European Commission last December. It also applies to European farmers who export products cultivated on deforested or degraded woodlands.

DANGER ZONE-

#1- Big Oil’s green frameworks are still not enough: Low-carbon transition plans published by big oil companies have met only 19% of London-based green investment consultant IIGCC ’s criteria for effective strategies as set out by its Net Zero Standard for Oil & Gas (NZS O&G), according to a new Climate Action report (pdf). Climate Action found that plans set out by 10 major oil and gas companies — including Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Shell and BP — were insufficient for investors to gauge transition risk accurately.

What is the NZS? The NZS O&G is a framework that was designed to better inform investors by evaluating a company’s transition strategy including production plans and methane commitments. It also assesses the level of climate disclosure, its alignment with the IEA’s Net Zero Emissions scenario, and strategies for diversifying into low-carbon activities.

Companies are failing to disclose key info too: Current disclosure transition plans leave out details on elements such as carbon capture or upstream production, making it unclear how their goals will be achieved. European companies generally offer better disclosure, more aligned targets, and greater investment in climate solutions compared to their North American counterparts, which lag in diversifying into low-carbon energy production. North American companies met just 3% of metrics assessing climate solutions.

Oil and gas isn’t slowing down: Oil and gas development is ramping up and set to quadruple 2023’s extraction by 2030 despite the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) warnings that new fossil fuel projects contradict the 1.5°C warming threshold, according to a Global Energy Monitor report (pdf). Since the IEA’s warnings in 2021, at least 20.3 bn barrels of oil equivalent have been discovered for future drilling. The Americas (with the US on top) account for 40% of new oil and gas project authorizations.

#2-The market for hydrogen electrolyzers is experiencing a surplus in supply as demand for the green fuel is yet to catch up to its production, Bloomberg reported last week. More than 100 companies now sell electrolyzers adding up to a yearly production capacity of 31.7 GW that far outweighs the 4.3 GW of predicted sales, and even more production factories are still in development. The demand for hydrogen has been in a slow rise given that the energy source necessitates installation of different equipment and infrastructure, which is yet to reach commercial prices. As the supply continues to rise faster than demand, a “shakeout” is imminent, the news outlet writes.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host the World Future Energy Summit from Tuesday, 16 April to Thursday, 18 April in Abu Dhabi. The summit will address solutions for development in the transformation of future energy systems. The summit will also feature discussions on recycling, waste-to-energy, and air-to-water trends and progressions.

The UAE will host the Connecting Green Hydrogen MENA event from Tuesday, 23 April to Thursday, 25 April in Dubai. The event will explore green hydrogen partnerships, policies, and practices in the region, in parallel to a showcasing of the latest in the clean fuel’s technology.

Oman will host the Oman Sustainability Week from Sunday, 28 April to Thursday, 2 May in Muscat. The event will focus on exploring investment opportunities and implementing best practices in sustainability within the energy, water, and environmental sectors.

The UAE will host The Electric Vehicle Innovation Summit from Monday, 20 May to Wednesday, 22 May in Abu Dhabi. The event will see industry leaders come together to discuss sustainable mobility and tapping into groundbreaking advancements in electric vehicles while engaging with key decision-makers.

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