Italian export credit agency Sace is proving its largest ever finance facility to support Saudi megaproject Neom’s use of Italian supplier.
President Emmanual Macron had hoped to secure more contracts for French companies during his three-day visit to Riyadh and Al-Ula, but few significant announcements were made during the trip which coincided with his government being voted down in the French parliament.
Iranian officials have revived the idea of building a tunnel under the Gulf to Qatar – an idea that previously suggested in 2022. The megaproject would require a tunnel with an underwater section of at least 185km – almost five times further than the current longest submarine tunnel in the world. Officials are due to hold discussions in Doha in the coming weeks, but the limited levels of bilateral trade mean the megaprojects is unlikely to make economic sense.
Abu Dhabi government-owned investment group ADQ has handed the master developer contract for the Ras El-Hekma megaproject on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast to Modon Holding – a company which ADQ already owns a substantial stake in.
The General Company for Ports of Iraq and the Ministry of Transport launched an appeal in a US court in mid-September, in the latest attempt to frustrate a $120m arbitral award owed to Cyprus-based Archirodon Construction.
Dubai-based DP World has blamed attacks on Red Sea shipping by Yemen’s Houthi rebels for the 40% fall in its profits in the first half of 2024. In contrast, Abu Dhabi’s AD Ports said its revenues had more than doubled and profits were up 25%.
The low-cost carrier is sticking to its all-Airbus strategy but is now adding wide-body aircraft to its fleet.
Potential deals in Australia and Rwanda would add to a portfolio that already includes stakes in British Airways, Cathay Pacific and China Southern, and is part of a strategy to boost traffic through Doha’s Hamad International Airport.
Dubai has revived plans to turn Al-Maktoum International into the world’s largest airport, pointing to a huge projected upturn in regional carriers’ business in coming decades and the commercial emirate’s determination to counter the challenge posed by regional rivals.
Sheikh Mansour Ibrahim Ahmed Hamad Al-Mualla has been appointed as executive director of the emirate’s Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation
The US and UK have announced sanctions on four senior Houthi figures linked to the campaign against commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. GSN’s latest map of the Yemen/Red Sea conflict zone shows a conflict zone where more than 30 ships have been targeted by Houthi missiles and drones since mid-November, forcing hundreds more vessels to divert around the southern tip of Africa – adding costs and delays to global trade.
Sharjah is looking to upgrade its infrastructure and increase capacity at its airport with a record budget worth $11bn announced for 2024. The independently-minded emirate has stood out among its UAE peers in its attitude to the Israel-Palestine conflict and much else.
Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al-Baker announced his retirement after 27 years at the helm – during which time the national carrier has been transformed beyond recognition. He will be replaced by Hamad International Airport chief operating officer Badr Mohammed Al-Meer.
Qatar’s ambassador to Australia Saad Abdulla Al-Mahmoud Al-Shareef and Qatar Airways executives are expected to be called to testify at an enquiry by the Australian Senate over a growing scandal around the Canberra government’s alleged protection of local flag carrier Qantas against international competition.
Securing workable energy, economic and security relations with Turkey has even greater urgency for Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government as the KRG says it can no longer afford to pay its employees’ salaries due to the closure since late March of the vital crude oil export pipeline.
