Modon to reportedly invest EGP 45 bn in Ras El Hekma infrastructure over next 2.5 years

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What we're tracking today

TODAY: Modon to invest EGP 45 bn in Ras El Hekma infrastructure + + Queen Alia Airport is getting USD 70 mn cargo, MRO centers

Good morning, nice people. It’s a brisk read this morning, with updates on infrastructure investments from Egypt, as well as new air cargo and aviation services projects from Jordan. But first, the latest update on Trump’s campaign against importers of Russian oil…

THE BIG LOGISTICS STORY ABROAD- Trump wants to expand tariffs push against Russian crude buyers: Trump is calling on the EU to impose tariffs of up to 100% on Chinese and Indian imports in a bid to pressure Russia — and is promising the US will match them if Brussels steps up. Speaking during a closed-door US-EU meeting in Washington, Trump said the West should keep the tariffs in place “until the Chinese agree to stop buying [Russian] oil.”

REMEMBER- Chinese refiners have recently ramped up purchases of Russian crude, taking advantage of reduced-price cargoes dropped by India due to US tariff pressures. The US imposed a 50% tariff on India as punishment for its Russian crude imports late last month.

The story received some attention in the int’l press: Financial Times | Reuters | CNBC | BBC

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Food imports are about to get easier in Abu Dhabi with new platform: The Abu Dhabi Agricultural and Food Safety Authority — in partnership with Abu Dhabi Customs — has launched the Golden Food Product List in a bid to streamline the clearance of food products, according to a statement. The new initiative is designed to support the influx of trade and uphold food safety standards.

The benefits for the companies: Listed firms — who demonstrate consistent conformity with approved standardized specifications and regulations through laboratory testing — will be prioritized for pre-clearance. The companies will see their products enter the local market directly — experiencing reduced custom clearance times and operational costs.

Was your internet connection affected by the cable cuts? Now we know who the likely culprit is: shallow cabling. A commercial ship’s dragged anchor is probably what led to the four severed submarine internet cables in the Red Sea, which disrupted internet in at least 10 countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, the International Cable Protection Committee’s Operations Manager John Wrottesley told the Associated Press. Shallow cabling in the area makes it prone to such damage, which causes about 30% of global faults, Director of Internet Analysts at the connectivity intelligence firm Kentik Doug Madory said.

#2- A commercial ship’s dragged anchor is probably the cause for severed undersea cables in the Red Sea, which led to internet connectivity latencies across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia since Saturday, the International Cable Protection Committee’s Operations Manager John Wrottesley told the Associated Press. Shallow cabling — known to be responsible for about 30% of global faults — makes cables in the area prone to such damage, Director of Internet Analysts at the connectivity intelligence firm Kentik Doug Madory said.

At least 10 nations felt the impact — including India, Pakistan, and the UAE, Madory said. About four cables were damaged, including the South East Asia–Middle East–Western Europe 4, the India-Middle East-Western Europe, and the Falcon GCX cables.

#3- Israel has taken its cross-border campaign against Hamas into uncharted territory, launching what it claimed to be ‘a precision airstrike’ in Doha targeting the group’s political leadership. The strike — which killed five Hamas members including the son of top negotiator Khalil Al Hayya — came as Hamas leaders gathered to discuss a US-backed ceasefire proposal. While Hamas claims senior figures survived, the attack has upended fragile truce efforts and drawn sharp condemnation from Qatar, which labeled the strike a “flagrant violation.” A Qatari security officer was among those killed, and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani warned that the talks now “lack any validity.”

Qatar said it will reserve the right to retaliate: The prime minister told reporters in a press conference (watch, runtime: 2:26) following the strikes that “Qatar is committed to act in a decisive way” against any threats to its territories and “will reserve the right to take all the needed measures to retaliate.”

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices went up this morning after the Israeli strike in Qatar and news of Trump calling on the EU to join for a bigger tariff push against buyers of Russian crude, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures increased by USD 0.35 to reach USD 66.74 / bbl by 00.33 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained USD 0.36 to trade at USD 62.99 / bbl.

Meanwhile, Opec is set to lean on six members to make up for oversupply, rolling out a compensation schedule requiring the identified members to make additional supply cuts between August 2025 and June 2026 to offset overproduction, according to a statement. The total aggregate reductions range from 190k bbl / d to 829k bbl / d.

By the numbers: Kazakhstan shouldered the largest burden at 2.63 mn bbl, followed by Iraq at 1.4 mn bbl, Russia at 311k bbl, followed by the UAE at 309k bbl, followed by Oman and Kuwait at 70k and 59k, respectively, for a combined 4.8 mn bbl. The remaining OPEC members — including Saudi Arabia — were not required to make compensatory cuts.

ICYMI- Opec+ will raise output again next month, approving an additional 137k bbl / d from October as part of its accelerated rollback of supply cuts. The cartel said it will continue monthly hikes through September 2026, fast-tracking the return of 1.65 mn bbl / d that was previously set to stay offline until the end of 2026.

ALSO- The Brent-Dubai spread is set to stay negative as demand for heavier Middle Eastern grades holds firm, even with rising Opec supply, Reuters reports, citing TotalEnergies trading chief Rahim Azouni. The tighter spread has made sweeter crudes more appealing for Asian refiners relative to Middle East sour grades, while also reopening the arbitrage for US barrels to move into Asia. On Monday, the Brent-Dubai Exchange of Futures for Swaps (EFS) narrowed by USD 0.12 to USD 0.47 per barrel.

#2- The LNG market is on track to swing into oversupply from 2026, marking a sharp reversal after years of tightness following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Bloomberg reports. The International Energy Agency expects the biggest jump in liquefaction output next year since 2019. The market is set to start easing after 1Q 2026, with supply length building through late 2026 and 2027, Bloomberg reports citing BNP Paribas’ head of energy strategy Aldo Spanjer.

More than 174 mn metric tons of new capacity is currently being built, set to lift global supply to 594 mn tons a year by 2030 — a 42% increase over 2023, according to BloombergNEF. Developers have penciled in long-term demand growth as Europe replaces Russian pipeline gas and China accelerates coal-to-gas switching.

That supply surge will likely outpace consumption, with BloombergNEF projecting that supply will consistently exceed demand between 2027 and 2030. Morgan Stanley expects European and Asian gas prices to drop below USD 10 per mn British thermal units (mmbtu) by late 2026, down from an average of USD 14 last winter, while BNP Paribas sees prices slipping as low as USD 8 in 2027.

Prices at those levels could reshape trade flow. Cheaper LNG would encourage Asian utilities to substitute oil with gas and could unlock demand in South Asia and Africa, where import terminals have sat idle due to high prices. The anticipated price drop could also broaden LNG’s role in power generation and open new growth markets for producers.

#3- Baltic index maintains upwards trajectory: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — increased 3% to 2,079 points on Tuesday, its highest since 29 July, driven by the larger segments. The capesize gained 3.6% to 3,016 points, while the panamax index climbed 4.25 % to 1,923 points. The smaller supramax index rose by 0.6% to 1,473 points.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Saudi Arabia will host the Smart Ports and Logistics Transformation Summit on Monday, 15 September and Tuesday, 16 September in Jeddah. The summit will host over 40 global and local speakers, industry experts, and policymakers to explore smart port solutions, port operations, and logistics within Saudi Arabia.

The UAE will host the Syria Recovery and Investment Forum on Wednesday, 24 September in Abu Dhabi. The forum will host leaders in business, regional investors, policymakers, and advisory experts to develop practical solutions for Syria’s road to recovery and economic revival.

Turkey will host the Global Freight Summit on Sunday, 28 September until Wednesday, 1 October in Istanbul. The summit will host over 330 attendees and over 250 firms for policy and knowledge and strategies exchange between forwarding partners.

The UAE will host the African & Middle East & Islamic Finance Aviation 100 Awards on Monday, 29 September until Wednesday, 1 October in Dubai. The event aims to highlight and reward the most remarkable transactions closed by airlines and aviation manufacturing and leasing firms.

The UAE will host the Global Rail Transport Infrastructure Exhibition and Conference on Tuesday, 30 September until Thursday, 2 October in Abu Dhabi. The event will be hosted by Etihad Rail and is set to welcome over 200 global speakers and upwards of 20k industry attendees to share innovative solutions and develop partnerships.

Saudi Arabia will host the Saudi Maritime and Logistics Congress on Wednesday, 1 October and Thursday, 2 October in Dammam. It will host over 200 registered exhibitors and some 15k attendees from over 90 countries to discuss AI-powered fleet optimization, shifts in global trade, and intelligence-driven infrastructure.

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

Abu Dhabi’s Modon to invest EGP 45 bn in Ras El Hekma infrastructure, tenders 2k acres of works to Egyptian contractors

Modon to funnel EGP 45 bn in Egypt’s North Coast infrastructure? Abu Dhabi-based developer Modon Holding will reportedly invest up to EGP 45 bn (c. USD 928 mn) over the next 2.5 years in infrastructure to support its 50 mn sqm Ras El Hekma project in Egypt, Asharq Business reports, citing three sources it says have knowledge of the matter.

Modon tendered 2k acres (8.1 mn sqm) of works — including roads and bridges, electricity networks, water and sewage systems — to 10 Egyptian contractors, with awards expected before year-end, according to one source.

REMEMBER- Abu Dhabi sovereign fund ADQ appointed Modon as the master developer for the 170 mn sqm USD 35 bn (c. EGP 1.7 tn) Ras El Hekma megaproject, and the lead developer of the first phase of the city covering 50 mn sqm. The remaining 120 mn sqm will be built out with Egyptian, Emirati, and international partners under the Ras El Hekma Urban Development Company.

UAE developers are ramping up their investments in Egypt: AD Ports will develop and operate a new industrial and logistics zone in East Port Said. UAE-based Nas Investments Holding submitted a mandatory tender offer earlier this year to acquire an additional 57.5% stake in EGX-listed fertilizers player EgyFert (Samad Misr). Meanwhile, Fujairah agreed to build a USD 3 bn petroleum logistics zone at Al Hamra Port on the Mediterranean coast last year.

QAIA gets new air cargo operations, MRO services center

More projects land at QAIA: Jordan has inaugurated two projects — with a total investment cost of USD 70 mn — at Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA), aiming to enhance cargo operations and improve aircraft maintenance at the airport, according to a statement.

Here’s the projects’ breakdown:

#1- A USD 40 mn air cargo center for RJ: The first project includes a USD 40 mn air cargo operations center for flagship carrier Royal Jordanian (RJ). The center will provide services for air freight operations covering nearly 54 global destinations — with the ability to carry all types of cargo, including medical supplies and perishable goods.

This will be QAIA’s third air cargo center, after Menzies Aviation launched the airport’s second hub on an area of 8k sqm back in January.

IN CONTEXT- QAIA’s 1Q saw reduced cargo operations, with a 16.5% y-o-y drop in handled cargo to 16.2k tons in 1Q 2025. The airport, meanwhile, registered 5.3% y-o-y higher aircraft movements, reaching 17.5k within the first three months of 1Q.

#2- A USD 30 mn MRO center for Joramco: Jordan also launched a USD 30 mn services building — named Hangar 7 — for the Jordan Aircraft Maintenance Company (Joramco). Hangar 7, which covers a total area of 12k sqm, will offer aircraft maintenance, repair, and refurbishment services to over 60 airlines worldwide at QAIA.

REMEMBER- Joramco is a major MRO player, serving more than 130 customers across over 60 countries through 5 hangars and 10 workshops. The company’s business has been booming on the back of rising MRO demand due to aging fleets and delayed deliveries of new jets. Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, which owns 80% of Joramco, was was reportedly mulling selling its stake in Joramco in a bid to take advantage of the company’s current fortunes amid a hot MRO market.

Gulftainer appoints three senior execs

#1- Gulftainer announces three senior execs: Emirati ports operator Gulftainer tapped Omar Rishi (LinkedIn) as executive VP and chief commercial officer (CCO) for ports and terminals, Peter Verheijen (LinkedIn) as executive VP and MD of its newly created container shipping lines division, and Aju Abraham-Thomas (LinkedIn) as executive VP and MD of marine and logistics services, according to a statement.

Meet the team: Rishi was most recently deputy region head and CCO at CMA CGM, Verheijen previously served as VP of Milaha’s container shipping division, and Abraham-Thomas has held senior roles at Wilhelmsen Group.

#2- NetApp taps Bassel Kassem as UAE country manager: Nasdaq-listed intelligent data infrastructure company NetApp named Bassel Kassem (LinkedIn) as country manager for the UAE, according to a press release. Kassem will focus on expansion into critical sectors like government, finance, healthcare, and energy, having previously held senior roles at Rubrik and Nutanix.

Updates on data centers, storage, e-commerce, zones, and logistics handling from Saudi Arabia and the UAE

DATA CENTERS-

Cooling systems for Oxagon AI data center: Local data infrastructure firm DataVolt signed an MoU with LG Electronics and its local partner Shaker Group to provide cooling systems for a new AI data center being developed in Neom’s industrial city, Oxagon, according to a press release. The agreement includes the supply of large-scale chillers and coolant distribution units for the facility.

REFRESHER- DataVolt signed a USD 5 bn agreement with Oxagon in February to set up a fully sustainable AI data center with an initial capacity of 300 MW, to be eventually ramped up to 1.5 GW.

STORAGE + WAREHOUSES-

Saudi’s first floating fuel storage unit: The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) and Minerva Saudi Arabia launched the Kingdom’s first Floating Storage Unit (FSU) for ship fuel at Jeddah Islamic Port, with a capacity of 113k cbm, it said in a statement yesterday. The unit can store very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO), high sulfur fuel oil (HSFO), and marine gas oil (MGO) while serving Minerva’s fleet of bunkering vessels and other licensed suppliers.

Registered as a bonded zone, the facility allows faster customs clearance and stronger oversight, while Minerva’s digital ADP platform ensures transparent and efficient fuel supply. Developed in partnership with several government agencies, it will also streamline Red Sea bunkering operations by enhancing shipment efficiency, blending, and vessel loading.

E-COMMERCE-

Shahbandr launches MENA’s first Arabic AI toolkit for e-commerce: Shahbandr AI went live in the Kingdom and MENA, touted as the region’s first integrated Arabic AI toolkit for e-commerce stores, Shahbandr said in a press release (pdf). Available at no charge to merchants on the Shahbandr platform, the toolkit provides a full Arabic interface and enables users to generate images, videos, audio, and marketing copy from a single dashboard.

ZONES-

Dubai South has launched a digital-first freezone platform — Dubai South Business Hub (DSHB) — designed to optimize business set-up processes for SMEs, entrepreneurs, and international firms, Dubai Media Office reports. The hub will offer online services to support set-up documentation and same-day licensing processes via a secure portal, as well as ones for visas, license renewals, and compliance.

Also on offer: Companies will have direct links to banks and government entities through the hub in the Dubai South Business Park. Corporate banking, accounting, family relocation, and VAT services will also be available.

LOGISTICS HANDLING-

State-owned conglomerate 7X has rolled out a new national logistics network, National X Network (NXN), to streamline postal and logistics services in the Emirates, state news agency Wam reports. The network will provide delivery, storage, and fulfillment services to individuals and SMEs across the UAE. The conglomerate tapped its logistics platform Waslah as operational manager and Wayn, its digital PO Box, for address services.

The details: The network includes over 87 branches and more than 1k out-of-home pick-up and drop-off locations. NXN will provide dark-store logistics solutions for e-commerce businesses and SMEs, along with same-day and next-day delivery.

Oil shadow fleet grows defying Western sanctions

Shadow fleets of oil tankers are growing larger, paradoxically driven by heavier sanctions levied by Western nations on Russian and Iranian oil operations, Reuters reports, citing commodity outfit Trafigura’s chief economist Saad Rahim.

Shadow fleet pressure is constant: The US sanctioned 20 entities and 10 vessels for their alleged role in Iran’s crude and petrochemicals trade as recently as last month, and threatened further tariffs against Moscow to pressure Russia into agreeing to a ceasefire in Ukraine.

While this constant pressure has slowed shadow fleets’ growth rate, their absolute size is still bigger than it was before sanctions, with operators more efficiently replacing blacklisted vessels with new ones, Rahim is quoted as saying.

REMEMBER- Shadow fleet operators are kind of resourceful: Tactics to evade sanctions have been evolving, with players like Iran embracing smaller and more agile tankers — specifically Aframax and Suezmax vessels — to transport its crude to ports with shallow berths that are less known and largely not wary of the impact of US sanctions. Ship-to-ship transfers have also been used to skirt monitoring — driving an 86% m-o-m surge in Iranian oil exports to China last March, despite successive sanction waves on its trade operations at the time.

Quantum navigation tech could solve maritime, aviation industries’ GPS disruptions problem

Breakthroughs in quantum navigation could save global logistics from deliberate tampering, as the Chicago Quantum Exchange (QSE) and its partners make strides in the field, UChicago News reports. QSE — along with partners Boeing and tech players Infleqtion and SandboxAQ — has pursued alternatives to GPS technologies that rely on satellite signals.

REMEMBER- GPS is vulnerable to disruptions: Conventional GPS positioning has fallen prey to deliberate electronic warfare attempts amid geopolitical turmoil. GPS jamming and spoofing — blocking and faking signals to mislead receivers — have become major threats to global logistics. Upward of 1k flights were affected per day in 2024, mainly in the Middle East and Eastern Europe due to geopolitical conflicts. In these cases, planes show false altitude or position, while ships can be sent off course or even run aground.

Promising pilots: Boeing’s experimental test used two systems: AQNav, a magnetic field navigation tool from SandboxAQ, and an inertial navigation system from quantum sensing firm AOSense. Infleqtion completed what it called the world’s first commercial flight trials of quantum navigation systems last year.

SOUND SMART- How does Quantum navigation work? Quantum navigation relies on accurate maps of Earth’s crustal magnetic field, as opposed to maps of terrain. One method — inertial navigation — tracks every change in direction, speed, and distance from a starting point to determine current location. Another method — map matching — tracks elevation patterns taken by a path to confirm a plane’s current position.

Calendar

SEPTEMBER

4-10 September (Thursday-Wednesday): Intra-African Trade Fair, Algiers, Algeria.

7-10 September (Sunday-Wednesday): Comex Global Technology Show, Muscat, Oman.

15 September (Monday): Logistics Leaders Saudi, Riyadh, KSA.

15-16 (Monday-Tuesday) September: Smart Ports and Logistics Transformation Summit, Jeddah, KSA.

23 September (Tuesday): TradeWinds Shipowners Forum Greece, Athens, Greece.

24 September (Wednesday): Syria Recovery and Investment Forum, Abu Dhabi, UAE.

24-26 September (Wednesday-Friday): Routes World, Hong Kong.

25 September (Thursday): World Maritime Day..

28 September-1 October (Sunday-Wednesday): Global Freight Summit, Istanbul, Turkey.

29 September-1 October (Monday-Wednesday): African, Middle East, and Islamic Finance Aviation 100 Awards, Dubai, UAE.

30 September-2 October (Monday-Thursday): Global Rail Transport Infrastructure Exhibition and Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE.

OCTOBER

The International Maritime Organization is set to formally adopt the Net-Zero Framework this month, stipulating new fuel standards for ships and a global pricing mechanism for emissions.

1-2 October (Wednesday-Thursday): Saudi Maritime and Logistics Congress, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

6-8 October (Monday-Wednesday): Maritime Cyprus Conference, Limassol, Cyprus.

7-8 October (Tuesday-Wednesday): Global EV and Mobility Technology (Gemtech) Forum, Riyadh.

7-9 October (Wednesday-Thursday): World Aviation Festival, Lisbon, Portugal.

13-17 October (Monday-Friday): The Marine Environment Protection Committee’s second extraordinary session, London, UK.

14-15 October (Tuesday-Wednesday): Investing in Africa Conference and Expo, London, UK.

14-16 October (Tuesday-Thursday): AntwerpXL, Antwerp, Belgium.

15 October (Wednesday): Global Trade Review, Cairo, Egypt

28-30 October (Tuesday-Thursday): Borneo International Maritime Week, Sarawak, Malaysia.

NOVEMBER

3-6 November (Monday-Thursday): Adipec Maritime and Logistics Exhibition and Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE.

4-6 November (Tuesday-Thursday): Air Cargo Forum, Abu Dhabi, UAE.

9-11 November (Sunday-Tuesday): TransMea Expo, Cairo, Egypt.

11-13 November (Tuesday-Thursday): Freightcamp, Bangkok, Thailand.

17-21 November (Monday-Friday): Dubai Airshow, Dubai, UAE.

18 November (Tuesday): ShipTek International Conference and Awards, Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia.

24-26 November (Monday-Wednesday): World Advanced Manufacturing Logistics Summit and Expo, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

DECEMBER

9-10 December (Tuesday-Wednesday): Rail Industry Summit, El Jadida, Morocco.

16-17 December (Tuesday-Wednesday): Saudi Airport Exhibition, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

JANUARY 2026

19-23 January (Monday-Friday): World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, Davos, Switzerland.

27-28 January (Tuesday-Wednesday): SkyMove Air Cargo MENA, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

27-28 January (Tuesday-Wednesday): Middle East ProcureTech Summit, Dubai, UAE.

FEBRUARY 2026

4-5 February (Wednesday-Thursday): Breakbulk Middle East, Dubai, UAE.

4-5 February (Wednesday-Thursday): MRO Middle East, Dubai, UAE.

25-27 February (Wednesday-Friday): Air Cargo Africa, Nairobi, Kenya.

MARCH 2026

10-12 March (Tuesday-Thursday): World Cargo Symposium, Lima, Peru.

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