Good morning, folks. The news cycle has slowed considerably as we hit mid-week with a smattering of news coming in the UAE and Egypt, but first, a wastewater update from the Olympics…
THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- The Seine is too polluted for Olympic athletes: The men's triathlon at the Paris Olympics has been postponed to tomorrow after pollution levels in the Seine remain too high. Heavy rains over the weekend dirtied the river, potentially increasing the concentrations of bacteria like E. coli and enterococci. Paris spent EUR 1.4 bn on wastewater infrastructure to make the Seine a centerpiece of the games and clean up spillage into the river. The men's and women's races, scheduled for tomorrow, could be further postponed to Friday, the contingency day reserved for the events.
The athletes themselves don’t seem to care: “I'd swim in anything to try and get a medal," Australian triathlete Matt Hauser told the Sydney Morning Herald ahead of the games earlier this year. The story grabbed ink in Reuters, CNN, The Independent, NBC News as we head for dispatch.
WATCH THIS SPACE-
#1- Masdar’s acquisition hunt isn’t slowing down: UAE renewable giant Masdar is expanding its focus on Europe's green energy sector with the continent set to be a crucial part of its plan to reach its 100 GW target capacity by 2030, its CFO Mazin Khan told Reuters. "We're not solely looking at them to add gigawatts to our portfolio... We're also putting a lot of emphasis on future pipelines and how we are effectively going to use those acquisitions to further expand within the region," Khan said.
Just the start of a wider plan for Europe: The acquisition of a stake in Endesa’s portfolio is just the start of Masdar’s ambitious plan for Europe, Khan said. His statements come days after Masdar secured a transaction that would see it acquire a 50% stake in Spanish power firm Endesa’s solar power installations subsidiary EPGE Solar for AED 3.3 bn (c. EUR 818 mn). The acquisition will make Masdar a partner in 2.5 GW of renewable energy assets in Spain with the transaction set to close in 4Q 2024.
And there’s more to come: Masdar also signed an MoU with Endesa to potentially develop an additional 3 GW of solar capacity, Khan said, without providing further details.
#2- Egypt could tap into floating solar power: Egypt plans to develop floating solar power plants to raise its power generation capacity and improve grid stability, Egyptian Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy Mahmoud Esmat said in a statement. The ministry is also moving forward with the planned 2.4 GW Attaqa Mountain pumped storage power plant in Suez. The USD 2.7 bn hydroelectric power plant will be the first in the country to generate electricity using water storage and pumping during peak periods.
The ministry has more plans up its sleeves: It also plans to implement energy storage systems to optimize the use of renewable energy during peak times and reduce operational costs, according to the statement.
IN OTHER EGYPT NEWS- More investments from Enara? Cairo-based renewables player Enara Group is looking to invest some USD 100 mn in Egypt’s local renewable energy sector through 2027, CEO Sherif El Gabaly told Al Borsa. The company plans to increase investments in existing organic and biofuel companies.
ICYMI- Enara Group plans to dual list on the EGX and a Gulf exchange next year, El Gabaly said in May, without providing further details. The company is currently being restructured ahead of the listing and in the process of selecting an investment bank to manage the listing.
#3- COP29 host Azerbaijan’s gas flaring activity hit a decade high last year, the Financial Times reports, citing analysis by campaign group Global Witness. Using satellite data, Global Witness found that the volume of gas flared at oil and gas facilities increased by 10.5% since 2018— the last year Azerbaijan reported its emissions. The rising practice was mainly concentrated at several installations operated or run by British oil giant BP and state-owned oil company Socar despite “numerous pledges” by both firms to stop the activity by the end of the decade. The practice in Azerbaijan had “gone largely unnoticed” because it “hasn’t bothered to report its emissions in six years”, Patrick Galey, a senior investigator at Global Witness, said.
REMEMBER- Azerbaijan has faced criticism for hosting COP29: There has been widespread criticism over Azerbaijan being chosen to host COP29 as a country dependent on oil production. Some 90% of Azerbaijan’s export revenues, and between 30-50% of its GDP come from its oil and gas sector. BP and other oil giants have also been investing in the country, transferring some USD 35 bn worth of oil and gas production to Azerbaijan since 2020, according to Global Witness.
#4- Another global initiative to scale up climate finance: The International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) announced a “strategic cooperation” with the Global Climate Finance Center to accelerate climate finance and renewable energy initiatives globally, Wam reports. The partnership aims to improve the scale, accessibility, and affordability of climate finance especially in regions lacking adequate financial resources. No further details were provided.
THE ENTERPRISE FINANCE FORUM-
Are you planning to be in Egypt on 24 September? You may be interested in attending our 2024 Enterprise Finance Forum. Seating is strictly limited at our flagship, invitation-only forum for C-suite executives and other senior leaders.
Why attend? We’re in the early days of a generational realignment of power in our industry — in our region and beyond — and on the cusp of the biggest intergenerational transfer of wealth the world has ever seen. With that as the backdrop, we’re going to take stock of where we stand six months after the float of the EGP and ask what’s next for finance in Egypt and the wider region. Among the questions we’ll be asking:
- What roles will Egypt, Saudi and the UAE play in the regional industry going forward?
- What are foreign investors looking for right now?
- Is real estate the only asset class in Egypt?
- What does the next generation of leaders think as they take over established family businesses?
Do you want to request an invitation? Tap or click the image below.
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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-
The UAE will host the World ESG Summit from Tuesday, 20 August to Wednesday, 21 August in Dubai. The summit will gather experts and industry leaders to explore new ways to integrate Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles into business practices.
Turkey will host the International Conference on Clean and Green Energy Engineering from Saturday, 24 August to Monday, 26 August in Izmir. The event will gather researchers and professionals to share advances in clean energy. It will also offer a platform to discuss the latest research, practices, and applications in clean and green energy engineering.
Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.



