{"id":80549,"date":"2023-11-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-13T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/climate\/2023\/11\/13\/today-saudi-arabia-is-lining-up-another-3-7-gw-solar-projects-masdar-kicks-off-its-145-mw-indonesian-floating-solar-plant\/"},"modified":"2023-11-13T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-11-13T00:00:00","slug":"today-saudi-arabia-is-lining-up-another-3-7-gw-solar-projects-masdar-kicks-off-its-145-mw-indonesian-floating-solar-plant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/climate\/2023\/11\/13\/today-saudi-arabia-is-lining-up-another-3-7-gw-solar-projects-masdar-kicks-off-its-145-mw-indonesian-floating-solar-plant\/","title":{"rendered":"TODAY: Saudi Arabia is lining up another 3.7 GW solar projects + Masdar kicks off its 145 MW Indonesian floating solar plant"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, lovely people. <\/strong>It\u2019s a busy Monday morning in our neck of the woods with lots of industry updates from across the region and beyond. Shall we?<\/p>\n

THE BIG CLIMATE STORIES- <\/strong>Saudi Arabia\u2019s state-owned Saudi Power Procurement Company issued requests for qualifications for four planned solar energy projects with a combined 3.7 GW production capacity as part of the fifth round of projects under KSA\u2019s National Renewable Energy Program and The Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) has inked an agreement with the Romanian Power Grid Company Transelectrica, Meridiam, E-INFRA, and Fluor to carry out a feasibility study for a HVDC infrastructure project in Romania.<\/p>\n

^^ We have the details on these stories and more in the news well, below.<\/p>\n

THE BIG CLIMATE STORY OUTSIDE THE REGION- \u2018Once in a century\u2019 flooding batters <\/strong>Somalia: <\/strong>The combined impact of the El Ni\u00f1o<\/a> and the Indian Ocean Dipole climate phenomenons have led to severe seasonal flooding in Somalia, killing at least 31 people as of yesterday and displacing some 500k people in the country. The United Nations says the \u2018once in a century\u2019 downpours could potentially uproot as much as 1.6 mn people and has disbursed USD 25 mn in aid to alleviate the crisis, which it says could destroy as much as 1.5 mn hectares of farming land. The flooding has already disrupted the lives of some 1.2 mn people in the country. <\/p>\n

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HAT TIP- \"The UAE is leading COP by example,\" Irena director-general says: <\/strong>The UAE is leading the way in the energy transition by eliminating oil subsidies and meeting its domestic target of tripling renewable energy, director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) Francesco La Camera said in an interview with Khaleej Times<\/a> on Friday. The UAE\u2019s efforts will set the stage for achieving COP28's objective of tripling renewable energy by 2030, the news outlet said. La Camera said that the renewables investment approach adopted by the UAE \u2014 which has invested in over 70 countries \u2014 should be mirrored globally. <\/p>\n

17% of Dubai\u2019s electricity generated in 3Q came from renewables: <\/strong>Dubai\u2019s total installed power capacity reached 15.1 GW in 3Q 2023, of which 17.2% (or 2.6 GW) came from renewable energy sources, Dewa said in its 3Q earnings statement, according to the Government of Dubai Media Office<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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OVER <\/strong>IN COPLAND- EU intends to pressure UAE to pay up for loss and damage: <\/strong>The EU is planning to push the UAE to contribute financially to the loss and damage fund, which adds the COP28 host to a group of heavy emitters \u2014 including China and Saudi Arabia<\/a> \u2014 that are receiving pressure from developed countries to pay up for their emissions, Bloomberg<\/a> reported on Friday. Western countries have been reluctant to agree<\/a> to a loss and damage text that requires only developed countries put money into the fund, calling for the fund to receive capital from a broad range of sources instead. China and Saudi Arabia have rejected the push, arguing that the countries responsible for the bulk of historical emissions should be the ones to shoulder the responsibility for loss and damage, the news outlet said.<\/p>\n

Can the climate fight bring the US and China together?<\/strong> The US and China said they have reached \u201cunderstandings and agreements\u201d on points of contention with regards to the climate fight, Reuters<\/a> reported on Friday, citing comments made by US Climate Envoy John Kerry. Kerry\u2019s comments came after four days of meetings with China\u2019s Climate Envoy Xie Zhenhua to ensure progress is made at COP28. Details of the agreements between the two will be disclosed soon, Kerry added.<\/p>\n

AND- COP28\u2019s net-zero charter gets its first bank signatory:<\/strong> The UAE\u2019s First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has become the first bank globally to join the COP28 Net-Zero Transition Charter launched last week<\/a>, Wam<\/a> reported on Friday. By joining the charter, the bank has agreed to set 1.5\u00b0C aligned net-zero 2050 and interim emission reduction targets, committing to an officially recognized (national or international) net zero pledge, establishing a net zero transition plan within one year of COP28, and publicly reporting annual emissions and progress. The charter aims to mobilize the private sector to commit to a 2050 transition plan, which is already defined in the bank's sustainability strategy. The bank also aims to allocate USD 75 bn for sustainable financing by 2030.<\/p>\n

OTHER COP28 UPDATES<\/strong> WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-<\/strong><\/p>\n