MANILA: Rice traders in the Philippines are set to import about 1.2 million tons of the staple food, a state grains agency spokeswoman told Reuters on Tuesday, as the Southeast Asian country lifts a two-decade-old cap on purchases.
Bigger rice purchases by the Philippines, already one of the world’s top importers and consumers of the grain, could underpin export prices in Vietnam and Thailand, traditionally its key suppliers.
Prices in Vietnam fell last week ahead of the country’s largest harvest this month, while the Thai market is likely to see additional supply toward the end of January from the seasonal harvest.
President Rodrigo Duterte in October ordered the “unimpeded” importation of rice after the country’s inflation shot up to 6.7 percent in September and October, the highest in nearly a decade, partly due to food prices.
The National Food Authority (NFA) has approved initial applications from 180 rice traders for permits to import a total of 1.186 million tons of either 5-percent or 25-percent broken white, the NFA spokeswoman said.
“We have not set any deadline for accepting applications to import rice. There’s no more limit,” she said.
Importers are allowed to bring in rice from any country, but grains from Southeast Asian suppliers will be charged a tariff of 35 percent while those from elsewhere will face a 50-percent charge.
Lawmakers have approved the bill removing the import cap on rice imports and replacing it with tariffs. Duterte will “most likely” sign it into law “soon,” presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said on Tuesday.
Philippine inflation eased in November and December, and the rice tariffication law could help curb it this year by as much as 0.7 percentage point, the central bank has said. Rice is the biggest food item in the country’s consumer price index.
Philippines set to import 1.2 million tons of rice as caps removed
Philippines set to import 1.2 million tons of rice as caps removed
- President Rodrigo Duterte in October ordered the ‘unimpeded’ importation of rice after the country’s inflation shot up
- Lawmakers have approved the bill removing the import cap on rice imports and replacing it with tariffs
New service at Jeddah port to boost Saudi-India trade
RIYADH: Saudi and Indian traders are set to benefit from Jeddah Islamic Port’s new service, bolstering trade connectivity between the nations.
The Saudi Ports Authority, also known as Mawani, on Thursday said that Unifeeder, a Danish logistics company, has introduced the “RGI” shipping service at the Saudi port. This initiative connects the Kingdom to Indian checkpoints, facilitating trade between the two nations and offering expedited and secure solutions for exporters and suppliers.
In a statement, Mawani affirmed that this undertaking showcases investors’ confidence in the Kingdom’s terminals, bolsters maritime transport and logistics services, and solidifies Jeddah Islamic Port’s status.
It added that the seaport is the Kingdom’s first dock for exports and imports, and the first re-export point in the Red Sea, with 62 multipurpose berths and a capacity of 130 million tonnes.
The new shipping service connects the Jeddah terminal to the ports of Mundra and Nhava Sheva in India, Jebel Ali in the UAE, and Sokhna in Egypt through regular weekly trips, with a capacity of up to 2,824 twenty-foot equivalent units, Mawani noted.
Mideast sets record in renewable energy capacity, Saudi Arabia reaches 2.6 GW: IRENA
RIYADH: Renewable energy capacity in the Middle East soared to a record high in 2023, with the addition of 5.1 gigawatts, marking a 16.6 percent increase from the previous year.
According to the latest data released by the International Renewable Energy Agency, this new addition brought the region’s total renewable energy capacity to 35.54 GW, with Saudi Arabia accounting for 2.68 GW.
The data showed that global green power capacity reached 3,870 GW in 2023, marking a 13.9 percent increase over the previous year. This represents the largest surge in sustainable energy capacity to date, with the addition of 473 GW.
Green sources constituted a record-breaking 86 percent of global power additions, primarily driven by substantial expansions in solar and wind energy.
Solar power alone contributed nearly three-quarters of renewable additions, totaling a record 346 GW, while an additional 116 GW of wind energy was incorporated, the report added.
Francesco La Camera, director general of IRENA, said: “Despite these unprecedented renewable additions in 2023, the world is still falling short of what is required to achieve the goal adopted at COP28 to triple installed renewable power capacity by 2030 to reach 11 TW.”
With one less year to meet the goal, he emphasized that the world now requires additions of approximately 1,050 GW each year for the remainder of this decade to align with the World Energy Transitions Outlook scenario and maintain a trajectory toward limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The growth of sustainable energy is unevenly distributed globally, with Asia leading the expansion with a 473 GW increase, primarily propelled by China’s 63 percent surge to 297.6 GW. This highlights a notable discrepancy with other regions, particularly developing countries. While Africa saw some growth, it was modest at 4.6 percent, reaching 62 GW.
By the end of 2023, Camera said, renewable energy sources comprised 43 percent of the global installed power capacity.
“Yet, as we draw closer to a world in which renewable energy accounts for half of total capacity, many energy planning questions still need to be addressed to establish renewables as the most significant source of electricity generation - including in the context of grid flexibility and adaptation to variable renewable power,” he added.
ACWA Power signs $800m water purchase agreement with Senegal
RIYADH: Saudi energy giant ACWA Power has signed an SR3 billion ($800 million) agreement with Senegal’s Ministry of Water to develop a desalination plant.
The company, partly owned by the Public Investment Fund, announced the inking of a water purchase agreement for the construction of the facility in Dakar, Senegal in a statement on the Saudi Stock Exchange, Tadawul.
ACWA Power will be responsible for the infrastructure, design and financing as well as construction, operation and maintenance of the Grande Cote seawater desalination plant in the West African country.
The project will have a production capacity of 400,000 cubic meters per day, the statement said.
Its first phase and financial impact are expected to materialize by the first quarter of 2028, with a contract duration of 32 years.
This marks a continued partnership between the company and Senegal, as it has previously signed a memorandum of understanding with the Senegalese National Water Co. and the country’s National Electricity Co. in September 2022.
The MoU entailed the development of a 300,000 cubic meters per day seawater reverse osmosis plant in Grande Cote, located about 40 km north of the nation’s capital.
The development was the first desalination project in the country to be facilitated through a public-private partnership and the largest treatment initiative of its kind in Sub-Saharan Africa.
NEOM CEO lands in top 3 of Forbes’ Real Estate Leaders list
RIYADH: NEOM CEO Nadhmi Al-Nasr has been ranked third in Forbes Middle East’s “Most Impactful Real Estate Leaders” list, underlining the Kingdom’s prominence in the sector.
The giga-project chief was placed beneath Mohamed Alabbar from UAE-based Emaar Properties and Talal Al-Dhiyebi, CEO of Abu Dhabi-headquartered Aldar Properties.
The Kingdom had the second-most entries on the list, with 23 Saudis appearing in the publication’s rankings.
This is a testament to the major investments the nation has made in its real estate sector, a statement from Forbes noted.
“Governments, corporates, and semi-government developers are investing in real estate projects throughout the region, particularly in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE. These projects are giving a huge boost to the regional construction sector, which also has a positive outlook over the next few years,” the statement said.
Demonstrating this, several leading Saudi companies landed within the top 20 of the list.
Among them was David Grover, the CEO of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund subsidiary, ROSHN Group, who ranked eighth place.
This is a testament to the giga-project’s vital role in enabling the achievement of Vision 2030 through the expansion of the private sector and the creation of job opportunities.
Similarly, the CEO of the Kingdom’s National Housing Co., Mohammad Al-Buty, ranked 13th, while the founder of Dar Al-Arkan Saudi Development Co., Yousef Al-Shelash, was placed 14th in an evaluation of 100 regional companies.
The criteria for the rating system are based on the company’s financials, value of projects completed, and reputation of project delivery, as well as the land bank units held by the developer.
Entities featured on the list based on this methodology include nine countries in the region. The UAE leads with 33 companies named, six of which are in the top 10.
Saudi Arabia followed with 23 companies, while Egypt came third, with 20 companies in the ranking.
This is driven by the fact that real estate sale transactions in the nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council between January and October 2023 reached $171.6 billion, up 21.1 percent year-on-year, according to a report by Kamco Invest.
In 2024, the property sector continues to have promising long-term potential. Robust economic growth, expanding population, and government investment could all contribute to increasing demand for real estate, the statement by Forbes highlighted.
UAE, Japan to develop industrial steam and electricity cogeneration plant in Saudi Arabia
Abu Dhabi National Energy Co., also known as TAQA, together with JERA Co., Inc, Japan’s largest power generation company, announced Thursday that they have entered into a Power and Steam Purchase Agreement with Saudi Aramco Total Refining and Petrochemical Co., or SATORP, a joint venture company owned by Saudi Aramco and TotalEnergies.
According to the Emirates News Agency, they will develop a greenfield industrial steam and electricity cogeneration plant that will produce electricity and steam for the Amiral petrochemical complex to be developed in Jubail in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.
The Amiral petrochemical complex is expected to house one of the largest mixed-load steam crackers in the Arab Gulf region.
The Amiral cogeneration plant will include state-of-the-art power and steam generation systems, gas and water receiving systems, and gas-insulated switchgear interconnections while meeting stringent efficiency standards imposed by the Saudi Energy Efficiency Centre.
The project also provides for the future installation of a carbon dioxide capture plant and is capable of hydrogen cofiring, WAM reported.
The Amiral cogeneration plant will be developed by a special purpose entity owned by TAQA, holding 51 percent, and JERA, holding 49 percent. It will operate on a build, own, and operate basis for 25 years, with the possibility of extension by five years upon mutual agreement.
TAQA and JERA will also undertake the operation and maintenance of the plant through an O&M special purpose entity.
Farid Al Awlaqi, CEO of TAQA Generation, said: “The signing of the offtake agreements for the cogeneration power and steam project at the Amiral petrochemical facility, a key downstream project being developed by two of the world’s leading energy companies, demonstrates the confidence in TAQA’s ability to deliver critical utilities, including power and steam effectively.
Together with our partner JERA, TAQA is looking forward to developing an efficient cogeneration plant that reduces carbon emissions and supports SATORP with its long-term decarbonization program. The agreement will bolster TAQA’s efforts in building on our growth and executing our 2030 goals.”
Steven Winn, chief global strategist of JERA, said: “We will be providing stable, highly efficient, clean and reliable power and steam to our customer SATORP. The Amiral Cogeneration plant will not only enhance the Amiral Complex’s operational efficiency, but also demonstrate our commitment to environmental stewardship and our growth ambitions for sustainable power generation solutions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the region.”