Good afternoon, friends, and congratulations on making it to the end of what has been a very busy workweek as everyone tries to wrap up loose ends before the end of the year. We’re looking forward to a festive pre-Christmas weekend with family and friends, and we hope you are too.

But first, let’s dive into the headlines of the day.

THE BIG STORY TODAY-

📍 Dubai-based Amea Power and Japan’s Kyuden International have wrapped financing on a USD 700 mn solar and battery storage project in Aswan, Amea said in a statement. It will be the largest single-site renewable energy facility in Africa when it comes online.

The International Finance Corporation led a USD 570 mn debt package, with co-financing from a who’s-who of development finance institutions, including Italy’s CDP, Dutch development bank FMO, Germany’s DEG, British International Investment, the OPEC Fund, and Europe Arab Bank.

By the numbers: The 1 GW solar plant, paired with 600 MWh of battery storage, should come online by June 2026. Amea Power holds 60% of the project, while Kyuden has 40%. It’s Kyuden’s first investment in Egypt; construction work is already underway.

This one is special: The Amea-Kyuden plant is being paired with what will become Africa’s largest battery energy storage system (BESS). The battery system will allow the massive solar park to supply renewable energy to the national grid during peak evening hours when load-shedding risks are highest.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

🌐 The global news cycle seems to be taking a breather as we wind down for the weekend. No single story is dominating the digital front pages, but plenty are making the rounds:

Among the stories getting plenty of ink in the business press: Murray Auchincloss is out, and Meg O’Neill is in as the first female CEO of BP and the first woman to run a major global oil firm. O’Neill is BP’s third CEO in five years, with Auchincloss stepping down less than two years after taking office. She’s expected to stick to BP’s strategy of prioritizing its core oil and gas business over renewables.

AND- New York Hedge Fund Standard General is reportedly in talks to invest in (or acquire) the Warner Bros. Discovery television networks excluded from the Netflix deal, which include CNN, according to a Financial Times report.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- We’re in for a cool start to the weekend in Cairo, with the mercury set to peak at just 22°C before cooling down to 12°C, according to our favorite weather app.

Tags: