Good morning, nice people. We have a compact issue as the weekend nears with lots of M&A updates emerging from the UAE plus news of a new regional supply chain company courtesy of Aramco and DHL. Let’s jump right in.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Oman will cut the ribbon on OQ8, a joint venture refinery between Kuwait PetroleumInternational and Omani energy firm OQ, in Duqm, according to a statement. The facility has a refining capacity of 230k barrels of crude oil and is strategically located on Oman’s eastern shoreline, allowing for connectivity to major international shipping routes in the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea, according to the release.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Qatar is looking to sell more LNG to India where LNG imports are set to double by 2030, Bloomberg reported. The country inked a long-term contract with India’s Petronet yesterday for an annual delivery target of 7.5 mn tons with Qatar meeting shipping costs. Qatar and India are seeing increased pressure to ink long-term deals, with plans to boost Qatar’s LNG exports by two-thirds set to kick off in 2027. Qatar has only secured approximately half the necessary consumers for this capacity so far, Bloomberg reports.

IN RELATED NEWS- 15 LNG carriers will be delivered to a mystery MENA shipowner:Shipyard Samsung Heavy Industries, one of South Korea’ “Big Three” shipbuilders, has inked a KRW 4.57 tn (USD 3.57 bn) agreement with an undisclosed Middle Eastern shipowner for 15 170.4k cubic meter LNG carriers slated for delivery in October 2028, according to a statement. This latest contract has beat the shipbuilder’s previous record for largest single order, which was previously held by a KRW 3.95 tn contract for 16 methanol-powered container vessels closed in July 2023, the statement said.

#2- Samsung plans to boost its exports from Egypt to European markets by 50%, according to a statement by Egypt’s General Authority for Investment and Free Zones. The company’s current exports are valued at USD 700 mn. Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Samsung Electronics Egypt BOD Chairman Jeon Soo-Jung recently met to discuss expanding cooperation in the country. Madbouly expressed Egypt’s interest to further collaborate with the company, especially in light of incentives that aim to encourage local manufacturing and export.

DISRUPTION WATCH-

The Houthis have launched attacks targeting two commercial ships sailing near Yemen’s Hodeidah, Reuters reports, citing statements by the Iranian-backed group. Barbados-flagged Morning Tide sustained damage from a UAV attack with no injuries to crew reported, the newswire writes, citing British security firm Ambrey. The ship performed evasive maneuvers but continued along its scheduled route, Ambrey said.

Will the Houthis sabotage internet submarine cables? Telecom firms linked to Yemen’s UN-recognized government are concerned that the Houthis are planning to sabotage a network of submarine cables in the Red Sea, The Guardian reported earlier this week. A Telegram channel linked to the Iranian-backed militia published a map of the undersea cables and hinted that they could be targeted, the outlet said. Nearly 17% of worldwide internet traffic relies on the cables concerned, the Guardian added.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index hit a one-week peak on Monday, with strong capesize gains outshining decreased rates for smaller vessels, Reuters reports. The overall index — which factors rates for capesize, panamax, and supramax vessels — increased 2.1% to settle at 1,436 points, its highest since 29 January. Capesize rates also inched up 5.5% to a two-week high 2,124 points. The panamax index, however, dropped 1.7% to 1,419 points.

#2- Oil held steady on Tuesday after seeing a 1% rally on Monday, as traders took a “wait-and-see” approach on whether US diplomatic efforts will see a lasting ceasefire in Gaza, Reuters reports. Brent dropped USD 0.08 to USD 77.91 a barrel by 09.14 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell USD 0.13 to USD 72.65, the newswire said. Lack of concrete steps towards de-escalation in the region continue to buoy prices, the newswire said citing an analyst, but concerns about future demand are reining in the market, the newswire also said.

DATA POINT-

Dammam’s King Abdulaziz Port hit its highest monthly handling last month to c.215.2k TEUs, the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) said in a statement. It beat its previous monthly handling record of 211.2k TEUs in July.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host Breakbulk Middle East on 12 and 13 February in Dubai. The networking event brings together government officials, oil and gas players, and contractors with representatives from upwards of 8k companies from 98 countries.

The UAE will host Sustainable Aviation Futures MENA from Monday, 12 February through to Wednesday, 14 February in Dubai. The event will see 80 expert speakers and upwards of 200 high level attendants and will handle topics pertaining to regulation, financing, and investments in Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) in MENA.

The UAE will host the Future Warehouse & Logistics Conference from Monday, 12 February to Wednesday, 14 February in Dubai. The event will handle means for supply chain leaders to boost resilience and overcome challenges, with discussions on disruptions, sustainability, Internet of Things (IoT), automation, workplace management and other topics.

The UAE will host The World Trade Organization’s 13th Ministerial Conference fromMonday, 26 February to Thursday, 29 February in Abu Dhabi. The event will gather ministers from around the world to assess the operation of the multilateral trading system and make key decisions regarding the future tasks of the WTO.

The UAE will host theTradeTech Forum on Tuesday, 27 February in Abu Dhabi. The forum will see some 180 trade leaders and experts discuss the technologically advanced trade environment and a showcase of trade tech solutions.

The UAE will host The Logistics Middle East Award on Wednesday, 6 March in Dubai. The awards ceremony brings together industry experts to celebrate the sector’s biggest accomplishments over the previous 12 months.The deadline for submitting nominations is Friday, 19 January.

KSA will host a special World Economic Forum event from Sunday, 28 April through to Monday, 29 April in Riyadh. The event will focus on global collaboration and energy.

The UAE will host The Electric Vehicle Innovation Summit from Monday, 20 May to Wednesday, 22 May in Abu Dhabi. The event will see industry leaders come together to discuss sustainable mobility and tapping into groundbreaking advancements in electric vehicles while engaging with key decision-makers.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.