Good morning, nice people. We have a meaty issue this morning with all the latest regional updates from the climate industry with an interesting development in the biofuels sector. But first, some exciting news from the UK…

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- UK sets nuclear fusion production record: Researchers at England's Joint European Torus (JET) have set a new record for nuclear fusion power production, generating 69 megajoules from just 0.2 milligrams of fuel. The project is part of the UK’s plans to kick off operations on the world's first fusion power plant in the 2040s with the project expected to be delivered by a new nuclear body. The UK lab’s record follows four decades of research, with scientists attempting to generate temperatures 10x hotter than the solar interior in order for the atoms to fuse together on Earth.

There could be big implications for the global green transition: Nuclear fusion could generate nearlyfour mn timesmore energy than burning oil or coal. Following a second nuclear fusion net gain recorded in the US in August, the country’s Special Envoy for Climate John Kerry launched an international plan to accelerate global fusion energy development at COP28.

The story made headlines in the international press over the weekend:The Guardian | BBC | CNN | The Financial Times | France 24

PSA-

The Global Smart City Forum kicks off today in Riyadh and will conclude on Thursday. The two-day event will host over 100 speakers from 40 different countries who will present the latest technologies on AI and smart city building.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Acwa Power begins research on green hydrogen + ammonia project in Egypt: KSA’s Acwa Power has begun conducting feasibility studies for its USD 4 bn green hydrogen and ammonia project in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Acwa Power Saudi Arabia Raad Al-Saadi told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday. Acwa Power is working with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, the Suez Canal Economic Zone, the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company, and the New and Renewable Energy Authority, on the project, which is part of the company’s wider plans to become a major exporter of the green fuel to the Middle East and Europe, Al-Saadi added.

REMEMBER- The agreement was just sealed recently: Acwa inked an agreement with the Egyptian government to develop the project last December. The first phase will have the capacity to produce 600k tons of green ammonia annually, while the second phase will expand the plant’s output by another 2 mn tons. The predicted investment value of the second phase was not disclosed, as well as the expected timeline for the entire project.

IN OTHER EGYPT NEWS- The Energy and Environment Committee of the Egyptian Senate has reviewed a study recommending that the government develop an atlas of geothermal energy potential and explore its applications for heat or energy generation, Al Mal reported last week.

What do we know about Egypt’s geothermal resources? Egypt’s potential sources of geothermal energy — which lie between 95 -221 mn kWh — are concentrated in the Gulf of Suez, the Red Sea, and the Western Desert regions, according to a 2021 geological study (pdf) by researchers at Saudi’s King Saud University and Egypt’s Benha University. The “majority of geothermal resources in Egypt can be categorized as medium to low-temperature potentials,” the study found, adding that the high-temperature assets that would be needed to produce on an industrial scale are few and far between.

#2- PIF-backed Lucid could soon move to full production of EVs in Jeddah, Marketing Director for Middle East Firas Kandalaft told Al Eqtisadiah on Friday. The first phase of production at Lucid’s second Advanced Manufacturing Plant (AMP-2) in Jeddah’s King Abdullah Economic City was limited to the assembly or manufacturing of some EV parts, he said. The AMP-2 is Lucid’s first plant overseas.

In context: Lucid’s AMP-2, the company’s first international plant which was inaugurated in September, has been carrying out semi knocked-down (SKD) assembly with a capacity of 5k vehicles per annum, re-assembling Lucid Air vehicle kits manufactured in Arizona’s AMP-1 plant, according to the company. The shift to completely built-up (CBU) production at its plant in Jeddah will help it boost production capacity to 155k vehicles per year.

Keep an eye on the rollout of Lucid Gravity: Lucid plans to unroll its new fully electric SUV, the Lucid Gravity, in the Kingdom soon, Kandalaft said. His statements come a few weeks after Lucid said it has expanded its advanced manufacturing plant in Arizona as it gears up to roll out the Lucid Gravity. Lucid is 60% owned by the PIF.

#3- HSBC to start reporting off-balance sheet emissions: The UK’s largest banking group HSBC will begin reporting carbon footprints linked to capital raises and lending to Big Oil firms in its annual report following pressure from its shareholders, the Financial Times reports. The move will see the bank include carbon disclosures on all capital market transactions, including bond issuances linked to drilling projects where HSBC would act as an arranger, an area previously seen as a “climate blind-spot” for banks, the FT reports.

The British bank has a lots of investments in big oil: The bank was among lenders managing a USD 3.3 bn revolving credit facility for Italy’s Eni targeting oil and gas expansions last year and worked on a USD 3 bn fundraising round for Aramco-backed Greensaif Pipelines Bidco, the FT notes.

ALSO- HSBC signed an agreement with Google to provide financing for companies looking to slash carbon emissions under its Cloud Ready-Sustainability program, Reuters reported last week, citing executives from both firms. This comes as part of the bank’s target to channel USD 1 bn in climate funding toward scaling green tech businesses companies by 2030. The bank hopes its partnership with Google will help it transition 1.3 mn of its clients to net zero by 2050. The company has already inked the partnership’s first loan agreement, but did not disclose the specifics of the debt terms.

REMEMBER- Investors have not been bullish on green tech of late: Climate tech funding dropped 40% y-o-y in 3Q 2023 due to a global investment downturn.

#4- EU passes truck emissions law after Germany's late demands: The European Union has approved a law to reduce carbon emissions from heavy-duty vehicles by 90% by 2040, following a last-minute demand by Germany to include trucks running on climate-neutral e-fuels like e-methane or e-methanol, to be counted towards the target, Reuters reported on Friday. Ahead of the vote, Germany's Transport Minister Volker Wissing called for the CO2-neutral fuel powered trucks to be eligible to count towards the EU transition target for trucks, instead of considering electric-powered trucks only. The new law is still pending parliament approval.

#5- US + EU partner to counter China's critical minerals dominance: The US and the European Union are planning to launch a new initiative to reduce their dependence on China for critical minerals, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing people with knowledge of the matter. The initiative would align outreach efforts to buyers in developed countries and resource-rich nations to cooperate on projects and policies and develop standards on investment, trade, research and environmental issues. They plan to reach an agreement later this month and officially launch the project in March.

The US-China green sector rivalry is heating up: The US is also weighing new measures to restrict imports of Chinese electric vehicles and related components over data security concerns, Bloomberg reported on Friday. The restrictions would apply to EVs and parts originating from China, regardless of where they are assembled, to prevent Chinese makers from evading tariffs through third countries. The Biden administration is also reviewing the existing 27.5% tariff on Chinese EVs imposed by Trump.

ALSO- The US will fund methane reduction projects: The US Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy plan to fund projects that will reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sectors, according to a statement released on Friday. The notice aims to give applicants enough time to prepare their proposals and form partnerships for the upcoming calls for funding.

#6- Global ESG sukuk market predicted to grow amidst rising interest in green financing: The global market for environmental, social and governance (ESG) sukuk is expected to grow to more than 7.5% of global outstanding conventional sukuks in the coming years — up from 4.3% in the end of 2023 — as issuers seek to diversify funding and meet investors' demand for sustainable finance, Fitch Ratings said last week. The total amount of ESG sukuk reached USD 36.1 bn by the end of 2023, accounting for 11.8% of all the hard-currency sukuk rated by Fitch. ESG sukuk issuance dropped by 4.6% from the previous year to USD 10.5 bn in 2023.

Some concerns for ESG sukuks ahead: While in the medium term ESG sukuk growth is expected to continue according to Global Head of Islamic Finance at Fitch Bashar Al-Natoor, this growth could still “be slowed by volatile debt capital markets, governments becoming less willing to pursue sustainable targets, and poor availability of qualified assets,” he warned.

How did the region fare? The Middle East accounted for about 75% of Fitch-rated ESG sukuk, followed by Asia at 22.9% and Europe at 1.7%. The biggest share was for the UAE with 41%, followed by Malaysia at 28%, Saudi Arabia at 21%, and Indonesia at 10%.

DANGER ZONE-

Red Sea shipping crisis causes emissions to soar: Ships avoiding the Suez Canal and diverting around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid Houthi attacks on commercial ships are expected to cause a 70% increase in emissions as vessels ramp up speed to compensate for the longer distance, the Financial Times reports. Denmark’s Maersk and Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd are some of the companies increasing speeds as they switch routes to travel around South Africa in a reversal of nearly a decade of using the “slow steaming” approach where ships lower their acceleration speed in efforts to reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions.

Container goods face biggest challenges: The Suez Canal serves as a crucial trade route between Asia and Europe, particularly for container vessels transporting finished and semi-finished goods, Reuters reported. Disruptions to this route significantly affects industries that are heavily reliant on production from Asia.

Suez Canal receipts almost halved in January: Suez Canal receipts fell 47% y-o-y to USD 428 mn in January as the number of ships passing through the waterway dropped almost 37% to 1.4k last month since the start of the war in Gaza.

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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.