THIS MORNING: EGA eyes stake in Omani rival + Masdar secures approval for UK offshore wind project

Good morning, friends, and happy FRIDAY. We’re one week away from what will be a rare, long Eid Adha holiday (at least for the public sector and for schools — we’re still waiting on confirmation for the private sector). One final push…

We end the week once again on a positive note, with another strong signal from foreign investors, this time for the GCC more broadly. BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners and Singapore’s Temasek have partnered up with Abu Dhabi’s Adnoc and new sovereign wealth fund L’Imad for a USD 30 bn fund targeting investments in infrastructure across the region and Central Asia.

The move comes amid a flurry of investments from big foreign players, including Brookfield last week with its Dubai Hills investment, and statements of confidence in the press from the people leading other major investors like KKR on investment prospects in the region — especially now as infrastructure and supply chain resilience become key priorities for governments.

Speaking of resilience: In another push for our defense capabilities, state-owned defense firm Edge has just acquired a majority stake in Italian propulsion systems manufacturer CMD.

WEATHER- It’s another hazy, slightly breezy — but still very warm — day, with a high of 38°C in Abu Dhabi and 36°C in Dubai, with both emirates seeing a low of 27°C.

Happening today

It’s a busy weekend for the UAE, with Art Dubai kicking off, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi planning a visit, and a UAE delegation taking Investopia to Milan.

#1- Prime Minister Narendra Modi will begin a five-nation tour today, starting with the UAE before traveling to the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, and Italy, a foreign ministry statement reads. The UAE is the only Gulf stop, and the visit comes as higher oil prices, shipping disruption, and pressure on India's FX buffers weigh on India’s economy.

Plus: Analysts expect the needle to move on the two countries’ strategic defense partnership, signed earlier this year. This comes as defense climbs very high up Abu Dhabi’s agenda, with last week’s Make It in the Emirates marking a clear inflection point for the sector amid a bigger focus on owning the full ecosystem from components to IP and supply chains.

That’s also happening alongside a Brics gathering of foreign ministers in New Delhi, which kicked off yesterday and is set to test the bloc’s ability to find a common line on the Iran war.

Tensions were felt on day one: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi accused the UAE of “colluding” with Israel, saying it was directly involved in attacks against Iran and denouncing the lack of a condemnation from the UAE when the US-Israel attacks had started. The UAE has not confirmed or denied any direct attacks against Iran, but the Wall Street Journal claimed it had launched attacks on the country earlier in April.

Iran has been calling on India to use the Brics platform to build consensus against US-Israeli actions, Reuters reports — and Tehran is already at odds with fellow Brics member the UAE on the war's framing. India is pushing for a joint statement anyway, even as several Brics economies absorb war-driven energy costs.

#2- Over in Milan, Investopia is kicking off today, with officials including State Minister Shakhboot Bin Nahyan Al Nahyan and Economy Minister Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri in attendance. Topics set to be explored include: resilience amid geopolitical changes, industrials and advanced tech cooperation prospects, and the new energy equation.

#3- Back home, Art Dubai will be opening its doors at Madinat Jumeirah today, running until Sunday. Downsized and pushed back from its earlier set date (in April) due to the war, the exhibit will feature 50 exhibitors, two-thirds of which are based in or have outposts in the region.

Watch this space

EGA eyes stake in Omani rival: Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) is looking to acquire an undisclosed stake in Oman’s Sohar Aluminium, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Sohar Aluminium is one of EGA’s regional rivals, producing around 400k tons per year of the metal.

The UAE already has a hand in the firm, with Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) holding a 40% stake, as does Oman’s state energy company OQ. British-Australian multinational mining firm Rio Tinto holds the remaining 20%.

But can we really call it a takeover? EGA’s entry into Sohar could come through buying Taqa’s stake, some sources said, in a move that would mark the latest sign of UAE entities consolidating assets in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Other sources, however, said EGA was eyeing Rio Tinto’s stake, or even both Taqa’s and Rio Tinto’s. OQ could even increase its holding to avoid a foreign majority control situation, another source said.

Outsourcing and expansion seem to be the name of the game for EGA recently, after its core smelting operations in the UAE took a huge hit at the end of March. A significant chunk of its capacity was taken out, and the firm was forced to invoke force majeure on several contracts. Since then, it has lined up an 80% acquisition of Italian aluminium recycling firm Eco Green, and settled with the government of Guinea, restoring bauxite supply arrangements between EGA and Guinean mining company Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinée.

REAL ESTATE — Hot on the heels of a major announcement of a 22 mn sqmexpansion of housing projects in Abu Dhabi, Aldar is expanding even further in Dubai. The Abu Dhabi developer just acquired (pdf) a residential and retail community development in Dubai Studio City from private developer SRG for AED 1.1 bn. Construction on the development, which includes six mid-rise buildings and offers apartments for rent, will wrap construction in 2028.

The firm has been making a major push in Dubai after years of developments in Abu Dhabi. In a JV with state-owned Dubai developer Dubai Holding, the firms added two land plots worth AED 38 bn earlier in February, with the tie-up bringing in AED 21.5 bn worth of sales since 2023. At the time, Aldar said the two plots bring its total Dubai development pipeline to over 2.3 mn sqm.

It’s also been on a financing spree as of late: In April, Aldar secured an AED 5 bn sustainability-linked revolving credit facility, lifting total liquidity to AED 38.2 bn, after earlier tapping debt markets twice this year through two USD 1 bn transactions.

RENEWABLES — Masdar and German energy firm RWE secured planning approval from the UK government for their offshore wind JV project, according to a press release. The Dogger Bank South wind farms are set to be located around 100 km off the northeast coast of England and have a combined 3 GW capacity.

BACKGROUND- The approval follows the projects securing contracts for difference support from the UK government earlier this year, giving the developers long-term price support for the electricity generated.

What’s ahead: RWE and Masdar will now move into detailed design and procurement work ahead of a targeted final investment decision in 2027.

ICYMI- Earlier this week, Masdar secured 2 GW worth of solar power from China’s JinkoSolar to use in Abu Dhabi’s first round-the-clock renewable energy project.

ENTERTAINMENT — We now know where (and when) Sphere Abu Dhabi will launch: The highly anticipated Sphere Abu Dhabi will open on Yas Island in 2029, between Seaworld Abu Dhabi and Yas Mall, The National reports, citing statements from Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism. Construction will cost around USD 1.7 bn, he confirmed.

REMEMBER- The venue will match the 20k-seat capacity of the Las Vegas original, with DCT Abu Dhabi overseeing funding and construction. Sphere Entertainment will provide tech expertise, operational support, and creative content, earning annual fees once the arena opens.

Data point

AED 5.6 tn — that’s the UAE’s gross bank assets as of the end of March 2026, up 1.5% m-o-m from AED 5.5 tn, Wam reports, citing Central Bank data. Gross credit also expanded 2.5% to AED 2.7 tn, driven primarily by an AED 52.4 bn increase in domestic credit. Lending to the government sector rose 6.9%, while credit to government-related entities increased 6%. Private sector credit also edged up 1.1%.

Total bank deposits rose 1.4% m-o-m to AED 3.5 tn, supported mainly by a 1.3% increase in resident deposits to AED 3.14 tn, while non-resident deposits increased 1.8% to AED 307.2 bn.

Among resident deposits, GRE deposits recorded the largest increase, rising 16.3% to AED 363.1 bn, and government sector deposits climbed 9% to AED 427.3 bn. Private sector deposits declined 1.9% to AED 2.3 tn, while deposits from other financial corporations fell 2.5% to AED 70.2 bn.

The figures show solid growth in credit from banks despite the impact of the war on the quarter in March. The Central Bank of the UAE launched a resilience package for the banking sector later in March to boost liquidity for local lenders.

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The big story abroad

All eyes are still on the Trump-Xi summit, now on its second and final day, which has so far reaped little other than a smaller-than-expected order of 200 Boeing jets from Beijing, which is its first of US commercial jets in almost a decade. Trump also said China will be buying oil from the US in an interview with Fox News.

He also claimed he had secured Xi’s pledge to help resolve the US-Iran conflict and mediate a resolution that would see the Strait of Hormuz reopened. Hopes were high for support from China given its reliance on the Strait for a big chunk of its oil imports and its close relations with Iran.

Speaking of the war: The Financial Times claims Saudi Arabia is weighing up the idea of a Cold-War-esque non-aggression pact between the Middle East and Iran, as part of talks with allies in the region on how to move forward and manage tensions once the war ends.

As for today’s regularly scheduled AI update: Cerebras’ shares soared on its debut, ending the day up 68% amid strong demand from investors who weren’t able to snap up a piece of the IPO before it came to market, the Wall Street Journal reports. We have more on the IPO, and what it says about the general AI craze of 2026, in this morning’s Planet Finance, below.

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