{"id":100073,"date":"2025-08-28T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-28T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2025\/08\/28\/saudi-egypt-interconnections-first-phase-91-completed\/"},"modified":"2025-08-28T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-08-28T00:00:00","slug":"saudi-egypt-interconnections-first-phase-91-completed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2025\/08\/28\/saudi-egypt-interconnections-first-phase-91-completed\/","title":{"rendered":"Saudi-Egypt interconnection\u2019s first phase 91% completed"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, everyone, and happy THURSDAY<\/strong>. August is almost over, and banks are racing to the debt markets to shore up their offers, with Banque Saudi Fransi closing a USD 1 bn issuance, while Alinma Bank and Saudi Awwal Bank wrap up their issuances later today.<\/p>\n

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WEATHER<\/strong>- <\/strong>Thunderstorms and heavy rain are to continue over Jazan, Asir, Al Baha, and Makkah today, with light to moderate showers expected in Najran and Madinah. Riyadh <\/strong>is expected to see a high of 42\u00b0C and a low of 31\u00b0C today, while Jeddah<\/strong>\u2019s mercury will peak at 37\u00b0C and bottom out at 30\u00b0C. Makkah<\/strong> will see a 39\u00b0C high and 29\u00b0C low.<\/p>\n

WATCH THIS SPACE-<\/p>\n

<\/a> #1- <\/strong>Saudi Arabia and Egypt are moving closer to launching their long-planned <\/strong>electricity <\/strong>interconnection<\/strong>, with more than 91% of the project\u2019s first phase completed, AlArabiya Business<\/a> reports, citing an unnamed Egyptian government official. Testing is now underway on cables, control units, towers, and communications. Trial operations of the interconnection were originally slated for April<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The <\/strong>USD 1.8 bn project<\/a><\/strong> will enable the exchange of up to 3 GW of power between the two <\/strong>countries once fully operational<\/strong>, with phase one seeing 1.5 GW of capacity flowing across the link. By exploiting differences in peak demand times between the two countries, the link is expected to reduce fuel consumption and allow for more efficient operations. <\/p>\n

Three high-voltage transformer stations anchor the project<\/strong>, two in the Kingdom \u2014 in Medina and Tabuk \u2014 and one in Egypt\u2019s Badr City<\/a>. Power will flow along a 1.35k km route through overhead power lines and a 22 km subsea cable in the Red Sea.<\/p>\n

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The project also paves the way for a future <\/strong>Arab Electricity Market<\/a><\/strong>, by connecting the two largest electricity networks in the Middle East. <\/p>\n

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<\/a> #2- Industry minister probes potential US investments:<\/strong> Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Bandar Alkhorayef sat down with a number of US industrial and mining companies to explore potential joint investments during his official visit to the US, state news agency SPA<\/a> reported yesterday.<\/p>\n

The details: <\/strong>Alkhorayef met with the vice president of global emerging markets at General Mills<\/a> to discuss food processing and manufacturing technologies and met with Lilac Solutions<\/a> \u2019 CEO to discuss lithium extraction. He also held talks with RTX<\/a> \u2019s senior vice president of international government affairs on defense and aerospace collaboration and with the CEO of International Flavors and Fragrances<\/a> to explore prospects in specialty chemicals and flavor production.<\/p>\n

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<\/a> #3- Saudi Arabia\u2019s rapidly growing non-oil sector is poised to be a magnet for global <\/strong>emerging markets investors<\/strong>, Franklin Templeton\u2019s Head of Investment for MENA Salah Shamma said in a CNBC interview (watch, runtime: 4:46<\/a>). While the Saudi stock market slipped 10% YTD due to headwinds from lower oil prices, the non-oil economies \u2014 supported by maturing debt markets and Vision 2030 \u2014 continue to gain momentum, primarily in consumer-facing sectors like healthcare, infrastructure, and education, Shamma said.<\/p>\n

Diversification is paying off: <\/strong>Market developments have increased its weight in the MSCI Emerging Markets index to about 4%, which is expected to further increase, driven by structural changes in the market and upcoming IPOs, Shamma added.<\/p>\n

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DATA POINTS-<\/p>\n

The Saudi Pro League\u2019s market value hit EUR 1.09 bn<\/strong>, with five clubs \u2014 Al Hilal (EUR 234.3 mn), Al Nassr (EUR 174.3 mn), Al Ahli (EUR 158.1 mn ), Al Qadsiah (EUR 135.2 mn), and Al Ittihad (EUR 111.5 mn) \u2014 making up 81.3% of the total value, according to Transfermarkt<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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OIL WATCH-<\/p>\n

Goldman Sachs expects Brent crude futures to slide into the low USD 50s \/ bbl by late <\/strong>2026<\/strong>, citing a widening oil surplus that could average 1.8 mn bbl \/ d between 4Q 2025 and 4Q 2026, Reuters<\/a> reports, citing a client note. The surplus could lead to an estimated 800 mn bbl rise in global stocks by the end of next year.<\/p>\n

Chinese demand could drive growth: <\/strong>A potential increase in Chinese stock growth to 800k bbl \/ d \u2014 up from 400k bbl \/ d so far this year \u2014 would lift its 2026 Brent forecast by USD 6 \/ bbl to USD 62 \/ bbl. <\/p>\n

REMEMBER- <\/strong>Goldman lowered Brent crude forecasts<\/a> by USD 2-3 a barrel to average USD 60 \/ bbl for this year and USD 56 \/ bbl in 2026. This came before Opec\u2019s decision to fully unwind its voluntary cuts by September<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD- <\/p>\n

Nvidia beat analyst expectations yesterday<\/strong>, with revenue increasing 56% y-o-y to USD<\/a>46.7 bn<\/a> in the second quarter of FY2026, while net income was also up 59% to USD 26.4 bn. The company expects growth to remain above the 50% level this quarter too, with USD 54 bn in sales.<\/p>\n

BUT- <\/strong>The chipmaker\u2019s stock price slipped 1.5% in extended trading<\/a> despite the bumper quarter, as data center revenue came short of analyst expectations, declining 1% q-o-q.<\/p>\n

OVER IN THE WHITE HOUSE- <\/strong>US and Israeli officials met yesterday to discuss \u201cpost-war<\/a>Gaza,\u201d<\/a> with President Trump set to chair a separate meeting for a \u201ccomprehensive plan\u201d for the next day, US envoy Steve Witkoff said. The meetings come amid a stall in negotiations and an imminent planned evacuation of Gaza City that is expected to compound the humanitarian situation and famine in the strip.<\/p>\n

ALSO WORTH READING-<\/strong><\/p>\n