Good morning, friends. It’s the final day before Ramadan, and we’re cherishing our last sips of morning coffee before a month of fasting; we hope you are too as you go through today’s issue.

THE BIG STORY TODAY- There’s a smattering of big stories coming out of the UAE, Egypt and Oman:

• AD Ports is eyeing stakes in Egyptian state-owned cargo handling firms;
• Amazon has launched a fulfillment center in Dubai that will up its storage capacity in the emirate by 70%;
• Oman’s Rakiza fund acquired a 31% stake in Oman International Container Terminal in the Port of Sohar.

WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY-

WATCH THIS SPACE-OCI Global + Lotte Fine want to build bunkering supply chain: OCI Global and Lotte Fine Chemical agreed to work together on the production of green ammonia as part of plans to set up a global supply chain and bunkering network, according to a press release. OCI will supply Lotte Fine Chemical with low carbon ammonia production from Texas starting later this year, and will eventually cooperate on ammonia-powered vessels in Ulsan, Korea, for commercialization in 2025, the statement said.

King Abdulaziz Port makes new container handling record: King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam handled 18,553 TEUs on one vessel, marking the highest throughput ever recorded at any Saudi port, according to a Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) statement. The previous record of 18,021 TEUs was set in 2Q 2022 aboard a CSCL Indian Ocean, a 20k TEU container ship.

Kuwait Ports Authority has launched the first phase of the KWD 48.8 mn redevelopment of berths at Shuwaikh Port, according to a statement. The phase will involve the demolition and removal of eight berths, which will be followed by phases involving the dredging and deepening of the basins up to a 14.5 meter draft and the building of sidewalks.The project will take up to 3 years to complete, according to the statement.

Russian coal shipments are driving up demand for capesize vessels: Capesize freight rates are in for a wave of upside volatility as Russian coal shipments become redirected to Western countries on the back of Western sanctions on Russian energy, MSI’s Associate Director Plamen Natzkoff writes for Splash247. Some 25% of Russian coal exports are now served by the capesize market, up from approximately 10% previously, as exports are rerouted to new destinations around 4k km away from the country, including China, India and Turkey. This is nearly double the distance that Russian coal exports took in 2018-2019, which averaged around 2-2.5km, Natzkoff writes.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The MENA region’s first drone industry event, the Levitate Conference and Exhibition, will take place from 16-17 July at the St. Regis Amman, according to a press release. The event is organized through a partnership between the Special Operations Forces for Exhibition and Conference (SOFEX) Jordan and Sager Electronics. The conference aims to raise awareness on the latest trends, developments, and innovations in the drone industry and to explore different drone-powered solutions.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.