Adnoc secures another 15-year LNG agreement for its Ruwais project

SUPPLY CHAINS-

Adnoc secures another 15-year LNG supply agreement for Al Ruwais: Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) signed a preliminary 15-year agreement with German energy giant Energie Baden-Württemberg, to supply it with 0.6 mn tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year, according to a statement. The LNG will be sourced from Adnoc’s lower-carbon Ruwais LNG project in Abu Dhabi, with deliveries set to begin in 2028 once the facility is operational. A finalized agreement will be subject to receiving regulatory approval and the companies reaching a definitive sale and purchase agreement.

This is the third long-term LNG supply agreement for the project: Adnoc inked similar 15-year agreements with China's ENN Natural Gas and SEFE Marketing & Trading Singapore, a subsidiary of Germany’s state-owned energy firm Securing Energy for Europe, to deliver to each some 1 mn tons of LNG annually from the new plant.

More on Ruwais LNG: The project is positioned to become the region’s first LNG export facility to operate on renewable energy. Ruwais LNG consists of two 4.8 mmtpa LNG liquefaction trains with a combined 9.6 mmtpa capacity, which will more than double Adnoc’s LNG output to 15 mmtpa once Ruwais LNG comes online.

Could Shell sell its gas stations in Malaysia to Aramco? British energy giant Shell is in talks with the Saudi state-owned Aramco to sell its gas station business in Malaysia, Reuters reports, citing industry sources. The sale could be worth up to USD 1 bn, the sources told the newswire. Although Aramco does not own fuel stations in Malaysia, it owns 50% of the Pengerang refinery in Johor alongside Petronas, which produces 300k barrels per day (bpd) for domestic fuel sales and exports, the newswire reports. Talks began late last year and an agreement could be reached within months, a source told the outlet. Shell owns some 950 fuel stations in Malaysia.

TRADE-

Hailiang to build battery parts plant in Morocco: Chinese copper tubes and rods manufacturer Zhejiang Hailiang is planning to construct a USD 288 mn plant for the production of lithium-battery copper foil in Morocco for export, according to a company filing (pdf) to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

What we know: The plant will be constructed in 36 months and will have the capacity to produce 50k tons of alloy, 35k tons of pipe, 40k tons of rod, and 25 tons of foil annually for export to Europe, America, MENA, and Africa.

Why Morocco? Morocco's free trade agreements with the US, EU and Turkey will allow easy access to those markets, Bloomberg explains. Hailiang also wants to capitalize on Africa's abundant copper resources to keep production costs low.

Saudi tech firm TruKKer now has a new integrated freight forwarding subsidiary, Omnilog, offering different air, sea, and land freight to connect major trade lanes in Asia, Europe, and both Americas, the company said on Tuesday. The subsidiary is now operational in the UAE, KSA, and Turkey, TruKKer said. No further details were disclosed.

About TruKKer: TruKKer is a digital freight network player connecting businesses with truck operators on busy inter-GCC and inter-Middle East land routes. The company runs an asset-light model, meaning it facilitates bookings through its platform without directly owning trucks. TruKKer’s investors include IFC, Abu Dhabi's Mubadala and ADQ, Saudi Technology Ventures, and Investcorp.

SHIPPING + MARITIME-

UAE + Jordan partner on maritime sector: The UAE and Jordan also signed an MoU “to drive cooperation, capacity building, and knowledge exchange and enhance mutual recognition of seafarers’ certificates of competence,” with a focus on exploring prospective areas of cooperation and capacity-building in the maritime sector, according to a Foreign Ministry post on X.

DECARBONIZATION-

Hydrogen-fired motorcycles coming to UAE: Emirates Transport has inked an MoU with sustainable transportation solutions company Contigo Mobility to deploy pilot fleets of hydrogen-powered motorcycles, according to a pressrelease. The agreement will see Contigo draw on its know-how on New Energy Vehicle two-wheeler fleet supply and hydrogen fuel cell technology to develop the motorcycles, the press release adds.

DIGITALIZATION-

Etihad Airport Services Cargo (EASC) has upgraded its Abu Dhabi hub to Hermes5, its latest cargo management system (CMS), according to a press release. The Hermes Ecosystem is “a suite of pay-as-you-go cargo management solutions that include Business Intelligence, Track & Trace, and a Learning Management System,” according to the statement. “In addition to the operational efficiency and new functionality of the upgraded CMS, EASC will benefit from an enhanced version of Hermes Business Intelligence, a comprehensive dashboard reporting tool based on Hermes’ extensive data lakes,” said CEO of Hermes Logistics Technologies Yuval Baruch. The Hermes Business Intelligence add-on is set to be operational with Etihad Airport Services Cargo in June 2024.