Good morning, to all of you out there, wherever you’re reading us from this morning.After a busy day in local business and economy news yesterday, we’ve been blessed with a bit of a breather before the end of a week.

But thankfully for you guys, there’s never no news (at least not since 18 April 1930), and we’ve got plenty for you to stick your teeth into. We’ve got news of another mega solar project coming our way from Scatec, important updates on the EGX for the traders out there, and a round-up of all the biggest announcements from the Egypt Energy Show that wraps later today.

BUT FIRST- A quick thank you to our friends at HSBC and Visa, with whom we spent the day yesterday for committee sessions of the good folks at the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt. We’ll have coverage soon of our discussion of what net zero means for corporates in Egypt and of how CEOs senior execs should be thinking about leadership and impact. We had a great time catching up with readers and friends both new and old.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

New administrative capital consultant named: The Administrative Capital for Urban Development has decided on our friends at Dar Al-Handasah to act as the urban consultants on the second, third, and fourth phases of the new administrative capital, according to a statement(pdf). Dar Al-Handasah, alongside a number of international experts, will take care of the city’s utilities, roads, green spaces, and urban planning, as well as its feasibility studies.

Remember: The ACUD will break ground on the second phase of the new capital in the secondor third quarter of this year.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- Biden’s top Mideast advisor is in town: White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk is in Egypt today, where he will be meeting with Egyptian officials to discuss Israel’s potential offensive on Rafah and hostage negotiations, reports Axios, citing Israeli and US officials. McGurk will travel to Israel tomorrow to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the sources said. The White House is yet to confirm McGurk’s visit.

#2- Shoukry is in Rio de Janeiro for G20 meeting: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukrytouched down in Brazil yesterday to attend the G20 foreign ministers meeting, which is taking place today and tomorrow. Shoukry is scheduled to speak at two sessions — one on the role of the G20 in handling international crises and another on reforming global governance, according to a ministry statement.

Remember:Brazil in December invited Egypt to participate as a guest in all G20 meetingsthroughout Brazil’s year-long presidency of the group. This is the second year in a row that Egypt is attending the G20 meetings — following its participation in New Delhi last year.

#3- EBRD VP in Egypt: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development VicePresident for Policy and Partnerships Mark Bowman is in Cairo until Thursday, according to a statement from the lender. Bowman will meet with a number of ministers, government officials, and business leaders, including Oil Minister Tarek El Molla and International Cooperation Minister Rania Al Mashat. The discussions will focus on “promoting a green, sustainable, and inclusive economy,” the statement read without adding further details.

#4- It’s the last day of the Egypt Energy Show at the Egypt International Exhibition Centerin New Cairo. The three-day event brings together 35k energy industry professionals and hosts over 80 conferences on energy transition and sustainable production.

** We have the full rundown of what went down throughout the conference in today’s Hardhat deep-dive.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

No single story has captured the imagination of the global business press this morning. For nearly two weeks now, it’s been all politics, all the time, and today is no exception.

Bloomberg worries that a meeting of G20 foreign ministers in Brazil today could see the bloc pull away from trying to shape the conversation on political issues including Israel’s war on Gaza and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “The Group of 20 nations is so split on the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine that they may be forced to reduce the forum’s scope and avoid geopolitical issues altogether this year,” the business information service writes.

The Financial Times is still keeping its eye on what it thinks could be looming trouble for banks struggling with bad property loans. And it’s not just regional lenders: “Bad commercial real estate loans have overtaken loss reserves at the biggest US banks after a sharp increase in late payments linked to offices, shopping centres and other properties,” the salmon-colored paper writes.

*** It’s Hardhat day — your weekly briefing of all things infrastructure in Egypt: Enterprise’s industry vertical focuses each Wednesday on infrastructure, covering everything from energy, water, transportation, and urban development, as well as social infrastructure such as health and education.

In today’s issue: We’ve put together a run-down of all the most important energy news to come out from the Egypt Energy Show, which is set to wrap up later today.

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