HEALTHCARE-
Al Fayhaa Hospital in Jeddah will start admitting patients on Sunday, 31 March, after having secured a license from the Health Ministry, the project’s co-owners Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services Group and Al Andalus Property said in two separate filings (here and here) to Tadawul. The 50-50 JV has finalized the necessary procedures and operational requirements for the launch. The project was announced in 2017 at an estimated cost of SAR 1.5 bn and an initial operational date of 2Q 2022, according to a disclosure to Tadawul.
ENERGY-
The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) will loan USD 101 mn to Pakistan to partially fund the building of two hydropower plants with a combined capacity of 70 MW, state news agency SPA reported yesterday. Pakistan has set an ambitious target to have renewables comprise 60% of its power mix by 2030 with a conditional target of an overall 50% reduction of its projected greenhouse gas emissions by the end of the decade.
INFRASTRUCTURE-
#1- Acwa Power expects a revenue hit following forced outage to its Nooro 3 solar plant in Morocco: Saudi renewables giant Acwa Power anticipates a USD 47 mn loss in revenues after a leak in the molten salts hot tank of the 150 MW Nooro III Concentrated Solar Project in Morocco’s Ouarzazate led to a forced outage in the plant, according to a Tadawul disclosure. The leak is expected to force an outage until November 2024 for the solar farm in which it holds a 75% stake, with the financial impact projected to be reflected in 2024.
#2- Solid waste management JV gets a nod: The General Authority for Competition (GAC) approved setting up a joint venture comprising Madinah Regional Municipality’s investment arm Al Mqr Development, Saudi Investment Recycling (SIRC) subsidiary Akam and UAE’s waste management firm Beeah for solid waste management in the city, Arab News reported yesterday.
What we know: The JV is set to tackle sewage control and treatment hurdles in Madinah through developing sorting stations, public landfills and other infrastructure. No further details were provided on the joint venture or when it plans to begin operations.
OIL & GAS-
Ades secures Jack-up rig contract in Thailand: Egypt-born, Tadawul-listed oil and gas drilling company Ades Holding has received a letter of intent from PTTEP Energy Development for SAR 354 mn jack-up drilling contract in the Gulf of Thailand, it said in a press release (pdf). Operations are slated to start in 2H 2024. The contract runs for 18 months with an extension option for an additional 9 months period. This brings the total number of Ades jack-ups in Southeast Asia to five, and marks the company’s entry into its ninth country of operations.
Ades has been ramping up overseas drilling: The oil and driller’s net income rose 13.7% y-o-y to SAR 452.1 mn in 2023, and its revenues were up 75.6% y-o-y to SAR 4.3 bn. The rise in revenues came on the back of a completed acquisition in Saudi in 4Q 2022 that added four operations rigs to its portfolio and the launch of 14 rigs from the 19 contracts signed with Aramco among other drivers
COFFEE-
Costa Coffee switches to Jazean beans: Kuwait-based Alghanim Industries, the largest Costa Coffee franchisee in the region, inked an agreement with PIF-owned Saudi Coffee to bring the homegrown Jazean Coffee brand to Costa Coffee outlets, according to a press release. Alghanim currently operates Costa Coffee stores in Kuwait, KSA, Qatar, and Oman, according to its website. No further details were made publicly available.
MILITARY INDUSTRIES-
Sami inaugurated its new Naval Systems Integration and Development Center, the PIF’s national defense and security champion said last week. The hub aims to enhance the Kingdom’s maritime defense systems and develop new capabilities by adopting high tech software in collaboration with local and global tech partners.