Fertiglobe, the world’s largest seaborne exporter of urea and ammonia combined, has announced the start of the commissioning of the first phase of the green hydrogen plant in Ain Sokhna, Egypt.
The announcement was made during an event at Cop27 that was attended by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store.
Egypt Green, which is owned, built and operated by Fertiglobe, Scatec, Orascom Construction and the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, marks an important milestone in the development of a green hydrogen ecosystem in Egypt and the broader African region, the entities said on Tuesday.
The commissioning of Egypt Green marks another important step in the journey to unlock the potential of hydrogen and its carrier fuels, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and UAE special envoy for climate change, said.
“As the world meets in Sharm El Sheikh for Cop27, this project represents a practical response to the need to meet rising energy demand with minimum emissions,” Dr Al Jaber said.
“The first integrated green hydrogen plant in Africa, delivered in record time, shows what can be achieved when we collaborate around a shared ambition.
“Fertiglobe will continue to leverage its knowledge and experience in hydrogen and ammonia, to make low and zero carbon fuels more available, as the world seeks a realistic pathway to a decarbonised energy system.”
The facility is the first integrated green hydrogen plant in Africa, and when fully developed will consist of 100 megawatts of electrolysers, powered by 260MW of solar and wind. It aims to deliver up to 15,000 tonnes of green hydrogen as feedstock for production of up to 90,000 tonnes of green ammonia per year in Fertiglobe’s existing ammonia plants.
The consortium is in the process of finalising engineering and technology choices for the full-scale 100MW plant and the partners aim to reach a final investment decision on the facility in 2023, the entities said.
Fertiglobe, a joint venture between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and Netherlands-listed OCI, raised about $795 million from its initial public offering on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange last year, amid strong demand from international, regional and local investors.
“It is a true milestone that puts Egypt and Africa firmly on the map as one of the best places in the world to develop a green hydrogen hub, thanks to available land, abundant renewable energy sources, the significant pool of skilled labour and our location on global cross-roads,” Nassef Sawiris, executive chair of OCI and executive vice chair of co-owner Fertiglobe said.
Green hydrogen, which is produced from water using renewable energy sources, has the potential to play a significant role in decarbonising hard to abate sectors, such as heavy industries, power and global shipping.
Ain Sokhna has a strategic position close to the Suez Canal economic zone with the possibility of using renewable electricity to develop an industrial hub near global shipping lanes.
The global hydrogen industry is expected to be worth $183 billion by 2023, up from $129bn in 2017, according to Fitch Solutions. French investment bank Natixis estimates that investment in hydrogen will exceed $300bn by 2030.
Hydrogen has the potential to cover 12 per cent of global energy demand and cut 10 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050, the International Renewable Energy Agency said in March.
“We see a massive green hydrogen demand driven by strong policy support globally, and Africa is perfectly positioned to take advantage of its low-cost renewables and strategic position,” Terje Pilskog, chief executive of co-owner and leading renewable power producer Scatec, said.
Ayman Soliman, chief executive of co-owner the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, said this project is a showcase of transitioning from “pledges to implementation, delivering on Egypt’s promise to the world to create a regional hub for green energy and transforming the Suez Canal into a green corridor”.
“We are setting a precedent with our foreign and local partners from the private sector by establishing the first integrated green hydrogen plant in Africa and emerging markets that caters to the growing demand for clean energy,” he said.
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Company Profile
Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi
About Takalam
Date started: early 2020
Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech and wellness
Number of staff: 4
Funding to date: Bootstrapped
Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.6-litre turbo
Transmission: six-speed automatic
Power: 165hp
Torque: 240Nm
Price: From Dh89,000 (Enjoy), Dh99,900 (Innovation)
On sale: Now
The squad traveling to Brazil:
Faisal Al Ketbi, Ibrahim Al Hosani, Khalfan Humaid Balhol, Khalifa Saeed Al Suwaidi, Mubarak Basharhil, Obaid Salem Al Nuaimi, Saeed Juma Al Mazrouei, Saoud Abdulla Al Hammadi, Taleb Al Kirbi, Yahia Mansour Al Hammadi, Zayed Al Kaabi, Zayed Saif Al Mansoori, Saaid Haj Hamdou, Hamad Saeed Al Nuaimi. Coaches Roberto Lima and Alex Paz.
Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?
Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.
They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.
“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.
He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
Du Football Champions
The fourth season of du Football Champions was launched at Gitex on Wednesday alongside the Middle East’s first sports-tech scouting platform.“du Talents”, which enables aspiring footballers to upload their profiles and highlights reels and communicate directly with coaches, is designed to extend the reach of the programme, which has already attracted more than 21,500 players in its first three years.
At a glance
- 20,000 new jobs for Emiratis over three years
- Dh300 million set aside to train 18,000 jobseekers in new skills
- Managerial jobs in government restricted to Emiratis
- Emiratis to get priority for 160 types of job in private sector
- Portion of VAT revenues will fund more graduate programmes
- 8,000 Emirati graduates to do 6-12 month replacements in public or private sector on a Dh10,000 monthly wage - 40 per cent of which will be paid by government
How to volunteer
The UAE volunteers campaign can be reached at www.volunteers.ae , or by calling 800-VOLAE (80086523), or emailing info@volunteers.ae.
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
AGL AWARDS
Golden Ball - best Emirati player: Khalfan Mubarak (Al Jazira)
Golden Ball - best foreign player: Igor Coronado (Sharjah)
Golden Glove - best goalkeeper: Adel Al Hosani (Sharjah)
Best Coach - the leader: Abdulaziz Al Anbari (Sharjah)
Fans' Player of the Year: Driss Fetouhi (Dibba)
Golden Boy - best young player: Ali Saleh (Al Wasl)
Best Fans of the Year: Sharjah
Goal of the Year: Michael Ortega (Baniyas)
Stamp duty timeline
December 2014: Former UK finance minister George Osbourne reforms stamp duty, replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 - 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; Over £1.5m – 12%
April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.
July 2020: Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.
March 2021: Mr Sunak decides the fate of SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget, with expectations he will extend the perk unti June.
April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.
