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  • UAE completes Arab world’s first nuclear plant

    Abu Dhabi's Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant will produce 40 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity annually after its fourth and final reactor entered commercial operation, the state-owned Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) said in a statement. It will generate 25% of the electricity needs of the hot, desert Gulf state, where air-conditioning is ubiquitous – nearly the equivalent of New Zealand's annual consumption, ENEC said.

  • UAE bets big on green hydrogen, eyes global clean energy leadership, ministry official says

    The UAE launched its National Hydrogen Strategy 2050 last year with the aim to become a top global hydrogen producer by 2031. The Gulf country plans to use its natural resources and energy infrastructure to build a hydrogen value chain, focusing on domestic demand and exports. By 2050, the UAE forecasts its hydrogen sectoral demand could grow fivefold to around 10.1 million tonnes per annum, supporting the country’s broader clean energy and net-zero emissions targets.

  • UAE recognizes Taliban envoy as realism increasingly drives foreign policy

    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has accepted the credentials of a Taliban diplomat as ambassador of Afghanistan. The move is a shift in Abu Dhabi’s approach to Taliban rule, which it has yet to recognize. Hailed by Taliban supporters as furthering the group’s international legitimacy, observers see the measure as reflecting rising realism in Emirati foreign policy.

  • UAE seeks solo trade agreements as intra-Gulf rivalry heats up

    The United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Arab world’s second-largest economy, is increasingly pursuing independent bilateral trade agreements, bypassing the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Saudi Arabia-led regional political and trade bloc.

  • Distressed companies on rise in Saudi Arabia and UAE, study says

    The number of distressed companies in the UAE and Saudi Arabia has increased by almost 9 percent in the past year, with the sectors most at risk including chemicals, commodities and specialised retail. Concerns also surround the consumer-facing food and beverage industry in both countries, according to a report from consultancy Alvarez & Marsal. A&M defines distressed companies as those that have “significant” deficits in terms of both their financial and earnings situation.

  • UAE, Saudi Arabia lead strong GCC consumer shift towards flexitarianism, healthy eating

    The GCC region, especially the UAE and Saudi Arabia, is seeing a strong consumer shift towards eating healthy, with an increasingly high share of non-vegetarians opting for more plant-based diets, industry experts said. This shift is poised to trigger a projected eight-fold surge in the size of the plant-based meat market to $500 million by 2030 from a mere $60 million in 2023, recent market research suggests. In contrast, the region’s meat market, estimated at $17 billion last year, is projected to reach only $26 billion during this period – a mere 53 percent rise.

  • The UAE’s Path to Food Self-Sufficiency

    The UAE has achieved high rankings in food security indices. However, these rankings do not fully capture all aspects of the UAE’s food supply challenges, which primarily stem from its lack of food self-sufficiency. Food self-sufficiency – having greater control over food supply and reducing vulnerability to external threats – is crucial, as it allows a country to directly manage and influence its food production and availability. Despite the presence of over 38,000 farms in the UAE, their contribution to its food supply is minimal compared to food imports, which constitute up to 85% of consumption and cost about $13.2 billion in 2022. While this amount is manageable for a country as wealthy as the UAE, this reliance on food imports makes the UAE vulnerable to global food supply shocks caused by climate change, geopolitical tensions, pandemics, and other disruptions. 

  • Why Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services are booming in UAE and Saudi Arabia

    In a recent study, Redseer Strategy Consultants shared that the use of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services is on the rise in the Middle East. Interestingly, the UAE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) outscored their regional peers. Charting the growth of the BNPL industry in the region, Redseer notes that in 2022, one in 10 consumers was using BNPL services. But by 2023, this figure had doubled, with one in five consumers now using BNPL options for online transactions.

  • Green Hydrogen: Air travel could go renewable as future fuel investment skyrockets in UAE, Saudi Arabia

    With massive intent and investment, Middle Eastern countries, led by the UAE and Saudi Arabia, are in pole position to reap the benefits as green hydrogen inches closer to becoming the preferred fuel of the future. Last week, a study undertaken by Sweden’s Chalmers University of Technology, said that almost all air travel within a 1200-kilometre radius could be made with hydrogen-powered aircraft by 2045. The Chalmers project is also working on a heat exchanger, which will enhance this range even further.

  • Lucid sees higher demand in Saudi Arabia, begins exports to UAE

    The demand for electric cars is increasing in Saudi Arabia, which is one of the company’s strongest markets in the world, due to the young generation’s awareness of the importance of sustainability and the efficiency, Faisal Sultan, Vice President and Managing Director of Lucid Group Middle East), told Argaam.