The Middle East’s rapidly advancing space sector has seen a slew of landmark achievements in the last few years. By Alexander Hendry In 2014, the UAE established the UAE Space Agency to oversee and grow its space sector, and it has since successfully completed numerous projects. In July 2020, it became the fifth country in … Continue Reading
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is home to 14 of the 33 most water scarce countries globally, with six times less water availability than the worldwide average and less than 2 percent of the world’s renewable water supply. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states – Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia … Continue Reading
Saudi Arabia’s recently announced plans to privatise several key industries in the Kingdom has once again brought the Kingdom’s privatisation agenda back into the spotlight. The announcements form part of the countries transformational initiatives as part of The 2016-2020 National Transformation Plan (NTP) to improve public sector efficiency and boost non-oil revenues in the region, … Continue Reading
In 2015, Egypt issued its unified Electricity Law no. (87), paving the way for market liberalisation of its power generation and distribution services. A few months on from its introduction, what are some of the key takeaways? The Electricity Law has promised to reform the electricity market and allow for private sector participation (both locals and … Continue Reading
New PPP Regulations Further to the publication of the new PPP law in August 2014, the corresponding executive regulations were published in the official gazette on 29 March 2015. The new regulations provide developers with additional information and clarification on key procurement matters such as prequalification, bid submission requirements, bid bond requirements, bid evaluation procedures, … Continue Reading
The financial close of the 1500 MW and 105 MIGD Az Zour North independent water and power project (IWPP) in January 2014 served as the trailblazer for the start of the public-private partnership (PPP) programme in Kuwait, representing the first project under the new PPP Law. The development of the Kuwaiti PPP projects market hinges … Continue Reading
The majority of the world’s desalination plants are located in the Middle East and we are likely to see a further increase given the region’s increasing water consumption and general water scarcity. GCC demand for desalinate water has increased at a rate of 9-11 percent in recent years according to Frost & Sullivan. By 2020, … Continue Reading
The Middle East and North Africa region is on the cusp of a new energy revolution. US$50 billion has been set aside for investment in solar power projects by 2020, as MENA governments seek to maximise the long term value of their hydrocarbon resources by utilising solar energy to meet growing domestic consumption. Whilst these … Continue Reading
Whilst project bonds have for some time been a popular source of financing for projects in the US, they have historically been slow to gain momentum in other parts of the world, including the Middle East. A number of explanations have been advanced for this – in the Middle East, the deep pool of bank … Continue Reading
Abu Dhabi’s Department of Transport has recently announced that it is pressing ahead with the procurement of the first phase of its metro and light rail project, representing not only a significant step in the development of the Emirate’s critical infrastructure, but also marking a renewed confidence and welcome return of the infrastructure development market … Continue Reading
The King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A.CARE) has recently published its consultation white paper for the “Proposed Competitive Procurement Process for the Renewable Energy Program.” The paper outlines the Competitive Procurement Process (the CPP) contemplated by K.A.CARE for solar, wind, geothermal and waste to energy projects in the Saudi Arabia. The publication … Continue Reading
Several new laws have taken effect in recent months in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from arbitration to the establishment of a centre for registration of lien and the long awaited mortgage law. As part of the restructuring underway in the Saudi Arabian judiciary system, long standing regulations for the resolution of banking disputes in the … Continue Reading
Few countries in the world have come close to matching Iraq in terms of contradictory media coverage in recent years. Stories of economic growth and opportunity are tempered by reports of political, tribal and sectarian divisions. While the world is focussed on insecurity in the immediate aftermath of the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq … Continue Reading
