AVIATION-

Qatar unveils new radar system for aerospace navigation: Qatari Transport Minister Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti introduced the long-range l-band radar in the North of Qatar on Monday, according to a statement. Aerospace tech giant Thales supplied and installed the radar system, which will encompass the Doha Flight Information Region (FIR) and track aircrafts within a radius of 400 km, detecting them from a height of 3k to 6.5k. The move falls in line with Qatar’s plans to enhance its status and presence in the global aviation map.

MARITIME-

Dutch chemical producer OCI Global is fueling the world’s first ever greenmethanol-powered container ship under a partnership with Danish shipping and logistics giant AP Moller-Maersk, according to a press release (pdf). Under the partnership, OCI will be providing the carbon-neutral methanol to fuel the maiden voyage of Maersk’s first dual-fueled container ship. The vessel is set to leave South Korea for its inaugural trip this summer, passing by the world’s busiest shipping routes to Northern Europe via Egypt’s Suez Canal.

Good news for Egypt’s green methanol ambitions: The event represents a “unique opportunity for the Suez Canal to position itself as a green marine bunkering hub to proactively attract more green marine traffic to the area and be ahead of nearby ports such as Fujairah, Jeddah and Morocco.” The vessel’s passage through Port Said will also help kickstart demand for green hydrogen offtake and consolidate the country’s position as a green hydrogen hub, it added.

REMEMBER- It was lights on for Egypt’s green hydrogen ambitions last year: Norway’s Scatec, the OCI / Adnoc joint venture Fertiglobe, Orascom Construction, and the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) began commissioning in November the first phase of their 100 MW green hydrogen plant in Ain Sokhna. The plant will be powered by 260 MW of solar and wind energy and will produce around 15k tons of green hydrogen.

RAIL-

The border area between Iraq and Iran will be cleared of mines that were planted during their eight-year war in orderto build the Shalamcheh-Basra railway, Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agencyreports. Once the mines are cleared, Iraq will begin development of the railway. The joint project will connect Iraq’s Basra to Iran’s Shalamcheh, linking Iran to Jordan, Syria, and neighboring countries.

No more movable bridge? Plans for a 880 meter movable bridge on Iraq’s Shat Al Arab river that were initially part of this project were scrapped, Mehr said, without disclosing a reason.

ALSO WORTH KNOWING-

  • Iranian ambassador to Baku Seyyed Abbas Mousavi held a meeting with Azerbaijan’s chairman of the state council comitteeShahin Baghirov to discuss strengthening cooperation between their customs authorities and streamlining transit trade procedures. (Mehr News Agency)
  • Waste management and engineering firm Petroleum Safety and Environmental Services Company (PetroSafe) partnered with the Suez Canal Authority and the General Authority for the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZONE) to conduct a practical experiment aimed at combating marine oil pollution at the West Port Said port on 6 June. (Egypt Oil & Gas)
  • Kuwait-based Agility subsidiaries PWC Aviation Servicesand United Project for Aviation Services signed a KWD 125 mn convertible loan agreement. (Disclosure)
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