DUBAI: State-run Saudi Telecom has hired six banks to arrange its first issue of US dollar-denominated sukuk, or Islamic bonds, the company said on Thursday.
Saudi corporates are increasingly expected to tap the international debt markets following the inclusion of Saudi government and quasi-government debt in key JP Morgan emerging market bond indexes this year.
The recent jumbo inaugural bond by state-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco has also attracted new interest in Saudi borrowers, and has provided a fresh pricing benchmark for future issues by state-backed entities.
HSBC, JPMorgan, Standard Chartered, Samba, First Abu Dhabi Bank, and KFH have been hired as lead banks for the planned deal.
Saudi Arabia’s biggest telecommunications operator said it had applied to list the sukuk with the Irish Stock Exchange.
The sukuk — the size of which will depend on market conditions and demand — are part of the company’s $5 billion sukuk program, established last month to back general corporate purposes.
Saudi Telecom hires banks for debut dollar sukuk
Saudi Telecom hires banks for debut dollar sukuk
- Saudi corporates are increasingly expected to tap the international debt markets
- Saudi Arabia’s biggest telecommunications operator has applied to list the sukuk with the Irish Stock Exchange
Global energy investment to hit record $3.3tn in 2025: IEA
RIYADH: Energy investment globally is projected to hit a record $3.3 trillion in 2025, driven by a surge in clean power spending amid economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, according to an analysis.
In its latest report, the International Energy Agency said that technologies in the sector, including renewables, nuclear, and storage, are set to attract $2.2 trillion in investment.
Investments in oil, natural gas and coal are set to reach $1.1 trillion this year.
The uptick in clean energy spending aligns with the wider trend observed globally as most nations, including oil-rich countries in the Middle East, have set net-zero targets to reduce emissions and combat climate change.
Saudi Arabia plans to achieve net-zero emissions by 2060, while the UAE aims to reach the goal in 2050.
Fatih Birol, executive director of the IEA, said: “Amid the geopolitical and economic uncertainties that are clouding the outlook for the energy world, we see energy security coming through as a key driver of the growth in global investment this year to a record $3.3 trillion as countries and companies seek to insulate themselves from a wide range of risks.”
He added: “The fast-evolving economic and trade picture means that some investors are adopting a wait-and-see approach to new energy project approvals, but in most areas we have yet to see significant implications for existing projects.”
Electricity takes the lead
IEA said that investment trends in the sector are being shaped by the onset of the “Age of Electricity” and the rapid rise in demand for industry, cooling, electric mobility, data centers and artificial intelligence.
A decade ago, investments in fossil fuels were 30 percent higher than those in electricity generation, grids and storage.
In 2025, electricity investments are set to be some 50 percent higher than the total amount being spent bringing oil, natural gas and coal to market, reaching $1.5 trillion.
In April, another report by the IEA also highlighted the growing demand for electricity globally driven by the rapid rollout of AI and data centers.
At that time, the think tank said electricity consumption by data centers powered by AI is expected to double by 2030 to reach 945 terawatt-hours, creating new challenges for energy security and carbon dioxide emission goals.
IEA added that electricity consumption by data centers has increased by 12 percent annually since 2019 to reach 1.5 percent of the global amount in 2024.
Clean energy surge
According to the report, spending on low-emission power generation has almost doubled over the past five years, led by solar PV.
The energy agency projected that investment in solar, both utility-scale and rooftop, is expected to reach $450 billion in 2025, making it the largest single item in the world’s energy investment inventory.
“Fierce competition among suppliers and ultra-low costs are seeing imported solar panels, often paired with batteries, become an important driver of energy investment in many emerging and developing economies,” said the IEA.
Battery storage investments are also climbing rapidly, surging above $65 billion this year.
Saudi Arabia has also set ambitious goals to generate clean energy, primarily using solar power.
The Kingdom plans to generate 58.7 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030, with 40 GW from solar PV. It also plans to generate 16 GW from wind energy and 2.7 GW from concentrated solar power.
This commitment is part of the broader National Renewable Energy Program strategy, aimed at diversifying its energy portfolio and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
IEA added that capital flows to nuclear power have grown by 50 percent over the past five years and are on course to reach around $75 billion in 2025.
The US and the Middle East accounted for nearly half of a resurgent level of final investment decisions for natural gas power.
Saudi Arabia is also planning to include nuclear energy as a key part of the Kingdom’s energy mix.
In January, the Kingdom’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the nation is planning to begin enriching and selling uranium.
Launched in 2017, Saudi Arabia’s National Atomic Energy Project is a cornerstone of the Kingdom’s strategy to diversify its energy sources.
If investments in carbon capture, utilization and storage move ahead as planned, spending in this sector will rise more than tenfold by 2027 from current levels, the IEA added.
“Low-emissions fuel projects are particularly prone to policy uncertainty. Some hydrogen projects have been canceled or delayed in the past 12 months, but there remains a pipeline of approved projects that require around $8 billion of investment in 2025, almost double the level seen in 2024,” said the report.
In November, NEOM Green Hydrogen Co.’s CEO Wesam Al-Ghamdi told Arab News that Saudi Arabia is on track to begin production in the world’s largest green hydrogen project by 2026.
The plant, located in the Kingdom’s $500-billion giga-project, will rely entirely on solar and wind energy to power a 2.2-GW electrolyzer designed to produce hydrogen continuously.
Grid investment gap
According to the IEA, investment in grids — now at $400 billion per year — is failing to keep pace with spending on generation and electrification.
“Maintaining electricity security would require investment in grids to rise toward parity with generation spending by the early 2030s. However, this is being held back by lengthy permitting procedures and tight supply chains for transformers and cables,” said the energy agency.
The report further said that lower oil prices and demand expectations are set to result in the first year-on-year fall in upstream oil investment since the COVID-19 slump in 2020.
The expected 6 percent drop is driven mainly by a sharp decline in spending on US tight oil.
However, investment in new liquefied natural gas facilities is on a strong upward trajectory as new projects in the US, Qatar, Canada and elsewhere prepare to come online.
The report added that the global LNG market is set to experience its largest-ever capacity growth between 2026 and 2028.
Geographical shifts
According to the IEA, spending patterns in the energy sector remain very uneven globally — with many developing economies, especially in Africa, struggling to mobilize capital for energy infrastructure.
The report added that Africa accounts for just 2 percent of global clean energy investment, despite being home to 20 percent of the world’s population.
“To close the financing gap in African countries and other emerging and developing economies, international public finance needs to be scaled up and used strategically to bring in larger volumes of private capital,” said the IEA.
China is the largest global energy investor by a wide margin, and its share of global clean energy investment has risen from a quarter 10 years ago to almost one-third now.
Even though well behind China, the IEA added that energy investment trends in India and Brazil stand out among emerging and developing economies.
“Mobilising international finance for clean energy investment in emerging and developing economies will need to be combined with the development of domestic capital markets,” added the energy agency.
Remittances from Egyptians abroad surge over 80%, reaching $26.4bn
RIYADH: Remittances from Egyptians working overseas recorded a significant jump during the first nine months of the 2024/2025 fiscal year, reaching an unprecedented $26.4 billion.
This marks an 82.7 percent annual increase compared to the $14.4 billion recorded in the same period of the previous financial year, according to data from the country’s central bank.
The surge was especially pronounced in the third quarter, from January to March, when remittances saw an annual climb of 86.6 percent to about $9.4 billion, up from $5 billion in the previous year.
On a monthly basis, March saw inflows of approximately $3.4 billion, reflecting a 63.7 percent increase compared to the $2.1 billion registered in the same month of 2024.
The rise in remittances reflects broader improvements in the country’s external financial position, indicating growing trust from Egyptians abroad and helping to ease pressure on foreign currency reserves.
It also highlights the impact of recent government and central bank measures aimed at stabilizing the exchange rate and encouraging the flow of foreign currency through formal channels.
Net international reserves rose to $48.5 billion at the end of May, up from $47.8 billion in March, indicating stronger foreign currency inflows and improved liquidity.
Egypt’s foreign currency position has been further supported by ongoing economic reforms implemented under an International Monetary Fund-backed stabilization program.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly reported in May that Egypt achieved real gross domestic product growth of 3.9 percent during the first half of the fiscal year, while private sector investment rose by 80 percent and foreign direct investment increased by approximately 17 percent.
Non-oil exports also grew by around 33 percent in the first nine months of the fiscal year, reflecting stronger activity in the industrial, tourism, and technology sectors.
Moody’s affirmed Egypt’s Caa1 long-term foreign and local currency ratings with a positive outlook in February, citing improved debt service prospects, higher foreign reserves, and falling borrowing costs.
The government reported a drop in the general budget deficit to 6.5 percent over the past 10 months and aims to reduce debt to 85 percent of GDP by the end of June, down from 96 percent the previous year.
However, inflationary pressures have re-emerged. Monthly urban headline consumer price index inflation rose to 1.9 percent in May, up from 1.3 percent in April and compared to a contraction of 0.7 percent in May 2024.
On an annual basis, urban inflation reached 16.8 percent in May, up from 13.9 percent in April. Core inflation followed a similar trajectory, rising to 13.1 percent year-on-year in May from 10.4 percent the previous month.
Oil Updates — crude slips on US stockpile build, Saudi Arabia price cuts
TOKYO/SINGAPORE: Oil edged lower on Thursday after a build in US gasoline and diesel inventories and cuts to Saudi Arabia’s July prices for Asian crude buyers, with global economic uncertainty weighing on prices as well.
Brent crude futures fell 1 cent to $64.85 a barrel at 9:30 a.m. Saudi time. US West Texas Intermediate crude lost 11 cents, or 0.2 percent, dropping to $62.74 a barrel.
Oil prices closed around 1 percent lower on Wednesday after official data showed that US gasoline and distillate stockpiles grew more than expected, reflecting weaker demand in the world’s top economy.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, cut its July prices for Asian crude buyers to nearly the lowest in four years.
“While the (Saudi) decrease was smaller than anticipated, it suggests demand is soft despite entering the peak demand period,” said ANZ analysts in a note.
The price cut by Saudi Arabia follows the OPEC+ move over the weekend to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day for July. OPEC+ is made up of members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia.
Weak US economic data and ongoing developments in US-China trade relations also weighed on oil prices, said independent market analyst Tina Teng.
“Simply put, a gloomy global economic trajectory dimmed the demand outlook,” she said.
“Markets are cautiously watching for any progress in trade talks between the world’s two top economies.”
Data on Wednesday showed that the US services sector contracted for the first time in nearly a year in May while businesses paid higher prices for inputs, indicating the American economy remains in danger of slow growth and high inflation.
On the trade front, US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that China’s Xi Jinping was tough and “extremely hard to make a deal with,” exposing friction between Beijing and Washington after the White House had raised expectations for a long-awaited Xi-Trump phone call this week.
Meanwhile, Canada prepared possible reprisals and the EU reported progress in trade talks as new US metals tariffs triggered more disruption in the global economy and added urgency to negotiations with Washington.
“Uncertainty fueled by President Trump’s shifting stance on tariffs has intensified fears of a global economic slowdown,” analyst Ole Hansen at Saxo Bank said in a note.
Saudi Aramco lowers July oil prices for Asian markets
RIYADH: Saudi Aramco has slashed its official selling price for crude oil destined for Asia in July, the company confirmed in an official statement on Wednesday.
The state-owned oil giant cut the price of its benchmark Arab Light crude by $0.20, setting it at $1.20 per barrel above the average of Oman and Dubai crude prices.
Saudi Aramco prices its crude oil across five density-based grades: Super Light (greater than 40), Arab Extra Light (36-40), Arab Light (32-36), Arab Medium (29-32), and Arab Heavy (below 29).
The company’s monthly pricing decisions impact the cost of around 9 million barrels per day of crude exported to Asia and serve as a pricing benchmark for other major regional producers, including Iran, Kuwait, and Iraq.
In the North American market, Aramco set the July OSP for Arab Light at $3.50 per barrel above the Argus Sour Crude Index.
Aramco determines its OSPs based on market feedback from refiners and an evaluation of crude oil value changes over the past month, taking into account yields and product prices.
Plans by OPEC+ producers to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day in July are also weighing on the market.
Yet, there was some support as wildfires reduced Canada’s production by some 344,000 bpd, according to Reuters calculations.
PIF-backed Lucid inks graphite supply deal to bolster US EV battery material sourcing
RIYADH: Lucid Group, the electric vehicle manufacturer backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, has signed a multiyear supply agreement with Graphite One to source natural graphite from the US.
The move is aimed at reinforcing the company’s domestic supply chain for battery production. The agreement aligns with Lucid’s broader strategy to secure critical raw materials domestically.
It follows similar deals with Graphite One and Syrah Resources as the company ramps up efforts to localize its EV production ecosystem.
According to the terms, the graphite will be supplied through Lucid’s battery cell partners for use in upcoming vehicle models.
Lucid is majority-owned by PIF, which holds a 60 percent stake, amounting to 1.77 billion shares. The partnership underscores the sovereign fund’s long-term commitment to advancing electric mobility as part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.
In September 2023, Lucid opened its first international manufacturing facility in King Abdullah Economic City. The plant currently produces 5,000 vehicles per year, with plans to scale up to 155,000 units annually. The expansion is expected to support Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to diversify its economy and become a regional hub for electric vehicle manufacturing.
“A supply chain of critical materials within the United States drives our nation’s economy, increases our independence against outside factors or market dynamics, and supports our efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of our vehicles,” said Marc Winterhoff, interim CEO at Lucid.
Under the latest deal, Lucid and its battery suppliers will begin receiving natural graphite from Graphite Creek, a deposit located near Nome, Alaska, starting in 2028. This builds on a prior agreement signed in 2024, in which Graphite One will provide synthetic graphite from its proposed anode materials facility in Warren, Ohio — also set to begin production in 2028.
“This agreement complements the deal we struck with Lucid in 2024 — which marked the first synthetic graphite agreement between a US graphite developer and a US EV company,” said Anthony Huston, CEO of Graphite One.
He added: “We made history then — and we’re continuing to make history now as we build momentum for our efforts to develop a fully domestic graphite supply chain, to meet market demands and strengthen US industry and national defense.”
Lucid is also expected to receive natural graphite active anode material from Syrah Resources starting in 2026, as part of its ongoing diversification of supply sources.
In a further boost to its financial position, Lucid closed a $1.1 billion offering of convertible senior notes in April, due in 2030. The announcement came shortly after the company reported first-quarter deliveries of 3,109 vehicles — a 58 percent increase year on year.
