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  • Saudi Arabia plans 2.6 GW solar park near Mecca
     

    Saudi Arabia is set to issue tenders for 2.6 GW Mecca solar project in 2019, according to reports. The Faisaliah Solar Power Project is planned to be developed in several stages by the Saudi Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources and the Development Authority of Mecca. Construction work on the project will begin this year, […]

     
  • General Abizaid Faces Tough Questions from U.S. Senators in Confirmation Hearing
     

    President Trump’s choice for the next U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia faced tough questions from U.S. senators but defended the U.S.-Saudi relationship on Wednesday and said the United States needed “a strong and mature partnership with Saudi Arabia.” Retired General John Abizaid’s confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee was the first of this session […]

     
  • Saudi Society Debates Keeping Shops Open during Prayer Times ahead of Shoura Consideration
     

    A debate is raging on social media in Saudi Arabia about whether the Kingdom should continue to require by law the closing down of all shops, malls, restaurants, gas stations, and even hospitals during the call for adhan (Islamic prayer) and throughout prayer time, according to media reports. According to Gulf News, Yahya Al Samaan, assistant president of […]

     
  • Saudi Arabia Names New Ambassador to United States: Princess Reema bint Bandar
     

    Saudi Arabia has named Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud as the 11th Saudi Ambassador to the United States, making her the first woman ever to serve in the role. Princess Reema will take over the role from Prince Khalid bin Salman, who has been appointed as the country’s deputy defense […]

     
  • Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Visit Pakistan on Saturday, Announce $20b in Deals
     

    Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to make his first state visit to Pakistan on Saturday, where he will announce investment projects worth up to $20 billion, a senior official told VOA news. The investment is needed for Pakistan, which is cash-strapped and facing multiple regional political challenges with a recently-elected Prime Minister. […]

     
  • Al-Falih: ‘Going forward the world is going to be Saudi Aramco’s playground’
     

    In a new interview with the Financial Times, Saudi Arabia’s powerful minister of energy, industry, and mineral resources Khalid Al-Falih indicated that Saudi Aramco would take on an active position as investor in resource opportunities outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia’s state-owned energy company, Saudi Aramco, will seek to develop an international energy […]

     
  • Saudi Media Powerhouse SRMG Launches Independent Arabia
     

    The Saudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG) and the UK online publisher The Independent have launched a new digital news site, IndependentArabia.com. SRMG announced the appointment of Saudi journalist and political analyst Adhwan al-Ahmary as editor-in-chief of the online platform, while the new service will be staffed by a team of experienced journalists from Saudi Arabia […]

     
  • Ambitious Saudi Entertainment Push Announced by GEA’s Turki al-Sheikh
     

    Saudi Arabia is looking to maintain heavy investment in the entertainment sector in 2019, according to comments made by a top Saudi official, as it looks to make good on key Vision 2030 economic reforms. Reuters reports that Saudi Arabia’s recently named chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, Turki al-Sheikh, said the Kingdom would put on […]

     
  • Saudi Arabia Explores Interconnected Gas Grid for Region
     

    Saudi Arabia may pursue an interconnected natural gas grid in the region that would link together the Kingdom with Oman, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates, according to reports. “I am talking to my colleagues in Oman, Kuwait, UAE, about extending a gas grid in the region and we hope to exchange gas and we also have […]

     
  • Saudi Arabia Eyes Major Domestic Energy Conservation by 2030, Al Falih Says
     

    Saudi Arabia expects to throttle back domestic energy consumption by 2030 by up to the equivalent of 2m barrels of oil per day, in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 economic and social reform initiative, according to comments made by Khalid Al-Falih published by Reuters. Saudi Arabia has long used easily extracted oil reserves for […]

     

MUST-READS

  • Qatar’s maverick ruler eyes soft power win with World Cup

    Tamim, who assumed power in 2013 after his father abdicated, has hit back against the critics, denouncing what he described as "ferocious" slander and double-standards, and pointed to Qatar's labour reforms and welcome of all walks of life to the event, testing the tolerance of conservative Sunni Muslim Qataris. Now all eyes are on the smallest nation to host the event in what will be the most expensive World Cup in history, organised at a cost of $220 billion - almost 20 times what Russia spent in 2018.

  • US ‘Quietly Extracts Concessions From Saudis After Power Play’ – Report

    Last week, the US scrambled jets toward Iran amid warnings that it was planning an imminent drone and missile attack on Saudi Arabia. After the show of force, an attack never came. But the incident highlighted the complex web of interests that keep the US-Saudi alliance alive even in hard times.

  • Analysis: Power vacuum adds to risks for crisis-hit Lebanon

    Lebanon has had neither a head of state nor a fully empowered cabinet since Michel Aoun's term as president ended on Oct. 31 - an unprecedented vacuum even by the standards of a country that has enjoyed little stability since independence. With politicians showing no compromise in a tussle over state power, some political sources and analysts say a compromise on the presidency may demand the type of foreign mediation that has saved Lebanon from previous such standoffs.

  • Analysis: Power vacuum adds to risks for crisis-hit Lebanon

    Lebanon faces an indefinite government crisis that further complicates the path out of its financial meltdown, adding to risks of instability as hardship deepens and state institutions teeter on the brink of collapse. Lebanon has had neither a head of state nor a fully empowered cabinet since Michel Aoun's term as president ended on Oct. 31 - an unprecedented vacuum even by the standards of a country that has enjoyed little stability since independence. With politicians showing no compromise in a tussle over state power, some political sources and analysts say a compromise on the presidency may demand the type of foreign mediation that has saved Lebanon from previous such standoffs.

  • Egypt Has a Powerful Reason for Hosting COP27

    Despite being one of the least-polluting economies, representing only about 0.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, Egypt is among the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Sea level rise as a result of global warming threatens Egypt’s entire northern coastline, which is inhabited by more than 7 million people, while also being the location of Egypt’s most important seaports.

  • Opinion: What New “Saudi First” Policy Means for Oil and Power

    In conversations with senior members of the Saudi royal family, officials and local business people, it’s clear that Riyadh is embarking on what I would call a “Saudi First” energy, economic and foreign policy agenda. It’s a shift several years in the making, which will have consequences for the rest of the world, chiefly via oil prices, but also when it comes to shaping Middle East diplomacy and the fight against climate change.

  • Davos in the Desert: What New “Saudi First” Policy Means for Oil and Power

    Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman has had enough. The Saudi Energy Minister, object of vitriolic criticism in Washington since he led the OPEC+ cartel into an oil output cut this month, said he keeps hearing: “Are you with us, or against us?” But the kingdom isn’t choosing sides, he told Wall Street’s good and great this week in Riyadh. “Is there any room for ‘We are for Saudi Arabia and for the people of Saudi Arabia?’”

  • ‘Everyone thinks we have magic powers’: Biden seeks a balance on Iran

    Instead, the administration is charting a middle path — one that voices support for the Iranian protesters and helps them through both easing and imposing some sanctions, but which falls short of an all-out pressure campaign to isolate Iran’s government or abandon nuclear talks with the regime, according to six U.S. officials familiar with the issue.

  • Saudi Arabia Wealth Fund Uses Influence of BCG Consultancy as Power Broker

    On its website, PIF doesn’t specify how strategy is run. Dennis Johnson left the role of chief strategy officer in 2020 after about two years. He appears to have two successors: Chad Richard, head of strategy development and integration, and Abdullah Alsalem, head of strategy and planning.

  • Analysis: Saudi oil power play bruises U.S. ties but won’t break them

    Despite the testy exchanges, both sides face constraints in how to pressure each other in practice, according to interviews with analysts and experts in the Gulf. Washington will not want to do anything to risk the security of the kingdom's oil sector, any damage to which would send prices spiralling even higher and possibly drive Riyadh closer to China and Russia. For its part, Riyadh is aware it cannot easily diversify arms supplies for its military, which has been overwhelmingly equipped and trained by the United States ever since the two countries forged their mutually beneficial relationship in 1945.