The UAE Regulations Lab has issued a licence for electric cargo aircraft as the country seeks to accelerate the shift towards eco-friendly transport and enhance the sustainability of the air cargo industry.
This licence was issued in collaboration with logistics company United Parcel Service to test electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft in the UAE, said a statement from the Government Media Office on Tuesday.
It will “contribute to reducing the carbon footprint by encouraging the adoption of clean energy and harnessing the potential of technology and innovation in redefining the future of the logistics sector and its impact on the environment and climate”, the media office said.
The licence also provides a strong legislative structure to operate a new generation of cargo aircraft that use clean energy, it added.
“The UAE is keen to adopt international best practices and advanced technologies in the air cargo industry,” Abdulla bin Touq, Minister of Economy and chairman of the General Civil Aviation Authority, said.
“Our country has become one of the most developed countries in the efficiency of air cargo operations. The application of the electric air cargo system will impact this sector positively, in accordance with the best standards of sustainability.”
The global all-electric aircraft sector is expected to grow by 14 per cent to about $20 billion by 2030, up from $6 billion in 2021, a study last year by Dublin-based consultancy Research and Markets found.
Industry stakeholders are developing core aircraft components and adopting technologies to transition the sector into a more sustainable means of air transport and cut carbon emissions, the study said.
Air taxis will begin flying in Dubai within three years, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said during the World Government Summit in Dubai last month.
Sheikh Mohammed added that he had approved designs for air taxi stations.
The RegLab, launched in 2019, seeks to “align regulation speed with innovation speed” by facilitating the development of regulations that keep pace with developments in sectors such as mobility, health, 3D printing technologies and artificial intelligence, the media office said.
Its latest aircraft licence will “provide the legal provision on a temporary basis to advance the UAE’s journey towards net zero emissions by 2050”, Mr bin Touq said.
The UAE is seeking to increase investments in the eco-friendly air transport sector and enhance its contribution to the country’s gross domestic product, the minister added.
Under the licence, UPS will be able to start its cargo operations through a new sustainable aircraft that conforms to the specifications and standards adopted internationally in the electric air cargo and transport system.
The GCAA possesses the capabilities and the necessary legislation to provide a safe operating environment for electric cargo aircraft through the issuance of regulations concerned with licensing runways for electric aircraft, as well as those related to airworthiness and operation, its director general Saif Al Suwaidi said.
While the entry of electric cargo flights could lead to congestion of airspace, this will also provide ease and flexibility of movement, lower noise and operate on clean energy, he said.
UPS has committed to 100 per cent carbon neutrality by 2050. The company will source 30 per cent of its aviation fuel from sustainable sources by 2035.
Dubai's first flying taxi stations - in pictures
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Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
THE%20HOLDOVERS
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THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
THREE
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope
Defenders: John Stones, Harry Maguire, Phil Jones, Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier, Gary Cahill, Ashley Young, Danny Rose, Trent Alexander-Arnold
Midfielders: Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Dele Alli, Jesse Lingard, Raheem Sterling, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fabian Delph
Forwards: Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy, Marcus Rashford, Danny Welbeck
