Good morning, wonderful people. We’re kicking off the week with a relatively brisk read — led by news on DP World locking in its stake in cement logistics and South Korea tapping Bahri for crude oil supply. PLUS: du and NextGenAI are bringing their A-game in an AI supercluster.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Saudi Rail International wraps up today at the Riyadh Front Exhibition and Conference Center. The two-day event brought together local and global players to explore the latest trends in the railway and transport industry, featuring more than 250 exhibiting brands and 200 speakers from around the world.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- The consortium investing in Aramco’s USD 11 bn Jafurah gasinfrastructure project reportedly includes the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and other global sovereign wealth funds, Semafor reported on Friday, citing sources it says are in the know. Heavyweights like the PIF, its Hassana pension fund, and the Arab Energy Fund will join the agreement as part of the group. Other investors include Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala and asset manager Lunate, Abrdn Investcorp Infrastructure Partners from Bahrain, GIC from Singapore, and National Pension Service from South Korea.

IN CONTEXT- An unidentified consortium led by BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) signed an USD 11 bn lease and leaseback agreement with Aramco for its Jafurah gas processing facilities in August. The agreement covers the Jafurah field gas plant and the Riyas NGL fractionation facility, which will be leased to a newly created subsidiary, Jafurah Midstream Gas Company (JMGC), and then leased back to Aramco for 20 years. Aramco will hold a 51% stake in JMGC, while the GIP-led consortium will own the remaining 49%. The consortium reportedly raised a financing package of nearly USD 10 bn last month to fund the investment.

The investors are joining a wave backing the gas production boost, after four Chinesestate-owned banks reportedly stepped up to provide over a third of the financing. The debt package includes some USD 1 bn each from the Bank of China, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and China Construction Bank, with around USD 750 mn from the Agricultural Bank of China.

#2- G42 has secured long-term equipment and started construction of the 1 GW Stargate UAE AI complex in Abu Dhabi, state news agency Wam reported on Thursday. The group also said it has secured 20% of its mechanical systems.

REMEMBER- The project is part of the 5 GW UAE-US AI Complex announced in May with OpenAI, Oracle, Nvidia, Cisco, and SoftBank. G42 is still£ finalizing the remaining 4 GW with US hyperscalers, under the broader USD 500 bn UAE-US AI infrastructure partnership and USD 200 bn US-UAE investment pact.

The caveat: While G42 is in line for Nvidia chips for the Stargate UAE cluster, the US has been limiting exports and has so far only approved chips directly meant for US-linked data center infrastructure in the UAE, as opposed to G42 itself. It’s still unclear how the partnership will move forward, though G42 was initially reported to be receiving one-fifth of the 500k chips Nvidia will be sending to the UAE annually.

#3- Dubai Airports IPO could draw strong global interest: A potential listing of Dubai Airports — operator of DXB, the world’s busiest international hub for a decade — would likely attract strong institutional demand, given solid airport valuations and steady returns, Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths told The National. Any decision on a listing would be to the government as the majority stakeholder, he added.

The draw: Airports trade at price-to-earnings ratios in the twenties and are seen as “blue chip utilities,” he said, citing sovereign investments in London Heathrow by Qatar and Saudi Arabia as precedent.

Aviation remains a key growth driver for Dubai, with the sect projected to contribute AED 196 bn to GDP and support 816k jobs by 2030, up from AED 137 bn and 631k jobs in 2023, according to Oxford Economics. Construction of the new USD 35 bn Al Maktoum International (DWC) terminal will add AED 6.1 bn and 132k jobs.

#4- The Egyptian government is currently working to overhaul the export framework in a bid to develop an integrated export system in line with international best practices, the finance and investment ministries said in a joint statement. The move aims to streamline export procedures and increase the competitiveness of Egyptian products globally.

Under the plan, efforts are underway to enhance the efficiency of export procedures at ports by setting up advanced inspection and detection units. These units — operating at export ports — are slated to streamline operational and logistics services. The ministries will also work to digitize export procedures to speed up the documentation process and cut costs, the statement read. AI will be utilized to streamline customs workflow.

#5- IMO defers vote on NZF levies to 2026: A majority of International Maritime Organization (IMO) members voted to adjourn its Maritime Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) session on adopting the Net-Zero Framework (NZF) for 12 months, according to a statement published on Friday. Those voting to postpone — 57 nations in total — were led by the US and Saudi Arabia, and stood against 47 who opposed the move, Reuters reported on Friday.

What now? The decision is a blow to the industry’s momentum for decarbonization, Reuters reported, citing shipping giant Maersk. Meanwhile, the IMO’s Intersessional Working Group on the Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Ships is still expected to convene today to work out the guidelines for implementing the NZF, the UN shipping agency said.

The plan all along? The US and Saudi Arabia requested a move that could significantly hinder the adoption of a NZF during the MEPC meetings, Lloyd’s List reported last week. The anti-NZF camp urged the adoption of “explicit acceptance,” which would require two-thirds of pro-NZF nations to confirm their approval to the IMO after the framework is adopted on Friday. Unlike “tacit acceptance” — the IMO’s decades-old paradigm — explicit acceptance could prompt delays for decades to come, the World Shipping Council reportedly said.

There was major pushback: The majority of nations on the meeting’s plenary floor — led by some EU states, Denmark, Canada, Kenya, and Australia — argued against Washington’s proposal, which was criticized as time-consuming, ineffective, and potentially a barrier for future rule-making.

#6- EasyJet to land in Marrakech: British low-cost carrier EasyJet is set to launch a new three-aircraft base in Morocco in summer 2026 as it looks to scale up its operations there, according to a statement released last week. The budget airline inked a long-term partnership agreement with the Moroccan National Tourism Office, under which it plans to offer 4 mn seats in its first year of launching the base. The move — marking EasyJet’s first operational hub in Africa — will see the planes serve 24 destinations.

The airline is also scheduled to launch four new routes, linking Marrakech to Hamburg, Lille, Strasbourg, and Geneva. “Morocco is [the airline’s] fastest growing market outside Europe,” EasyJet CEO Kenton Jarvis said, adding that the new base will “unlock capacity and offer new destinations at constrained airports across Europe.”

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices slipped this morning, weighed down by fears of oversupply and weaker demand amid US-Sino trade tensions, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures dipped by USD 0.24 to USD 61.05 / bbl as of 12:32am GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) shed USD 0.21 to trade at USD 57.33 / bbl.

#2- Baltic index inches up again: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — increased about 1.2% points to 2,069 on Friday. The capesize gained 2.1% to 3,121, while the panamax index climbed up 1 point to 1,827. The smaller supramax index eased 2 points to 1,424.

#3- The Drewry World Container Index fell by 2% to USD 1,687 per 40-ft container on Thursday, according to the latest index readings. The drop comes on the back of market turbulence driven by the US’ tariff policies since April. The container forecaster projects the supply-demand balance to fall in 2H 2025, causing spot rates to fall further.

#4- India to trim Middle East LPG imports in favor of US fuel: India is angling to reduce LPG imports from the Middle East, instead boosting its US sourcing throughout 2026, Reuters reported last week, citing unnamed sources. India has reportedly notified its suppliers in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar of the likely change. The pivot is seen as New Delhi’s bid to secure a favorable trade agreement with Washington, with whom it is still engaged in trade talks. Indian state refiners will buy about 2 mn tons of US LPG next year via tenders.

DATA POINT-

#1- Freight volumes in Saudi Arabia climbed 9% y-o-y to over 15.6 mn tons in 2024, transported through 6.8k trips spanning 6.3 mn km, according to Gastat’s 2024 Railway Transport Statistics Publication (pdf). The North Train line carried 90.6% of total freight, led by bauxite (33.7%) and phosphate (30.7%). Container transport on the East Train grew 27.0% y-o-y to 887.9k units, though overall freight ton-km fell 9.8% y-o-y.

#2- Sales of high-sulfur marine fuel at the Port of Fujairah surged to their highest level so far this year in September, rising 21.7% m-o-m to 229.6k cbm, according to data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone published by S&P Global Commodity Insights. High-sulfur fuel accounted for 36% of total bunker sales during the month, up from 30% in August, while low-sulfur fuels made up the remaining 64%.

On the down side, total bunker sales fell 1.8% m-o-m to 639k cbm in September — the lowest level in three months — as lower demand for low-sulfur fuel weighed on overall volumes. Sales of low-sulfur marine fuels, including low-sulfur fuel oil and marine gas oil, dropped to 409.4k cbm during the month.

***YOU’RE READING EnterpriseAM Logistics, the essential MENA publication for senior execs who care about the industry that connects producers and retailers to global markets. We’re out Monday through Thursday by 9:15am in Cairo and Riyadh and 11:15am in the UAE.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host the Adipec Maritime and Logistics Exhibition and Conference on Monday, 3 November until Thursday, 6 November in Abu Dhabi. The conference will host over 250k attendees working in government entities, finance, and tech.

The UAE will host the Air Cargo Forum on Tuesday, 4 November until Thursday, 6 November in Abu Dhabi. The forum — hosted by Etihad Cargo — will bring together air freight industry leaders, policymakers, innovators, and stakeholders to discuss industry solutions, tech, strategies, and collaborative initiatives for global air logistics.

Egypt will host the TransMea Expo on Sunday, 9 November until Tuesday, 11 November in Cairo. The expo will host regional and international players in the transport industry to explore tech, new smart solutions and products for transport and logistics services.

The UAE will host the Dubai Airshow on Monday, 17 November until Friday, 21 November in Dubai. The event will host over 1.5k exhibitors and 148k industry experts from over 150 countries, to discuss air mobility, new MRO breakthroughs, sustainable aviation, startups and new tech for aircraft simulations.

Saudi Arabia will host the ShipTek International Conference and Awards on Tuesday, 18 November in Al Khobar. The conference will host policy makers, organizations, suppliers and experts on maritime, offshore and oil and gas.

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