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"@amazon's $20 billion investment in data centres in Australia will set us up for the future, boosting our economy and productivity".
Learn more about these plans below.
https://www.tahawultech.com/enterprise/amazon-to-invest-billions-in-australian-data-centre-ecosystem/
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Zawya
26 minutes ago
- Zawya
Global agrifood systems need urgent funding to support sustainable transformation and build climate resilience
Middle East – Global agrifood systems require annual investments of $1.1 trillion over the next five years to transition to sustainable, resilient food production models that secure employment and align with the goals of the Paris Agreement. However, current annual investment is severely lacking, reaching only 5% of the required amount. Unlocking greater capital flows will thus require innovative financing mechanisms. Currently, most private investments in food systems are concentrated in Europe and North America. Those most in need of investment – Asia Pacific, Africa and Latin America – remain significantly underfunded. A new joint report by Bain & Company and the World Economic Forum highlights innovative financing models that could lower investment barriers and bring in a broad range of financial actors to help meet the funding gap. 'Food systems transformation is not just a climate imperative — it is a commercial opportunity. Financiers with exposure to the food sector have a vested interest to improve credit risk profiles of their customers. Investing in food systems also allows financiers to adhere to increasingly stringent portfolio sustainability regulations and to deliver on critical stakeholder commitments,' said Iwona Steclik, a partner at Bain & Company's Financial Services practice in EMEA. Common barriers to funding the food system transformation include uncertainty around the financial returns, fragmented nature of food production creating operational challenges, inconsistent impact reporting and limited coordination across the value chain. Hence, innovative mechanisms are needed to scale up finance for climate resilience in agriculture. Given the diversity of food systems and varying starting points of financial institutions, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. The report focuses on financing the transformation—primarily through lending—while acknowledging the importance of other instruments like insurance. The proposed financial models fall into three categories: direct farmer financing, lending via corporates, and multi-stakeholder platforms—each designed to lower investment barriers. Together, these models capture the breadth of innovation across markets, commodities, and de-risking strategies—highlighting the diverse pathways to transform food system finance. Initiatives such as Aceli Africa, Project Acorn, McCain's regenerative agriculture program, and the Innovative Finance for the Amazon, Cerrado and Chaco (IFACC) platform demonstrate how commercial, philanthropic, and government capital can be aligned for scalable impact, according to the report. 'A defining feature of all these models is the need for coordinated action across the entire value chain, including farmers, agrifood companies, retailers, financial institutions, data providers and governments. Each of these models employs de-risking strategies that span from traditional financing tools like guarantees to innovative approaches such as monetizing ecosystem outcomes,' said Derek Baraldi, Head of Sustainable at the World Economic Forum. 'Transforming food systems presents major investment opportunities for commercial capital to unlock new markets, boost revenues, and enhance portfolio resilience. However, scaling such investments requires a customized strategy aligned with an institution's strengths, portfolio, risk appetite, and sustainability goals', said Christian Graf, partner at Bain & Company and leader of the EMEA Sustainability & Responsibility Financial Services practice. To succeed, financiers should: Set clear targets on food systems transformation investments and challenge teams to identify scalable, profitable models, tailored to portfolio and capabilities. Build strategic partnerships across the food value chain (including catalytic capital providers, agrifood companies and/or farmers) to ensure shareholder returns and accelerate delivery at scale. Design and adopt innovative financing mechanisms, supported by de-risking mechanisms (including demand signals). Manage credit risk effectively to work with emerging datasets and strengthen climate impact data capabilities. Secure active and sustained senior leadership support. About Bain & Company Bain & Company is a global consultancy that helps the world's most ambitious change makers define the future. Across 65 cities in 40 countries, we work alongside our clients as one team with a shared ambition to achieve extraordinary results, outperform the competition, and redefine industries. We complement our tailored, integrated expertise with a vibrant ecosystem of digital innovators to deliver better, faster, and more enduring outcomes. Our 10-year commitment to invest more than $1 billion in pro bono services brings our talent, expertise, and insight to organizations tackling today's urgent challenges in education, racial equity, social justice, economic development, and the environment. We earned a platinum rating from EcoVadis, the leading platform for environmental, social, and ethical performance ratings for global supply chains, putting us in the top 1% of all companies. Since our founding in 1973, we have measured our success by the success of our clients, and we proudly maintain the highest level of client advocacy in the industry.
Economy ME
33 minutes ago
- Economy ME
UAE, Saudi Arabia venture into the U.S. LNG space
Of the more than $3 trillion in investments pledged by GCC leaders during U.S. president Donald Trump's regional tour, U.S. LNG emerged as a top strategic target. This was underscored by Saudi Aramco president and CEO Amin Nasser during the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum in Riyadh where he said: 'We are looking at expanding in LNG, and the U.S. is really a good place to put our investment.' Some of the investments were already committed before Trump's visit but Saudi Aramco is looking for further opportunities to grow its LNG portfolio. QatarEnergy was an early mover into the U.S. LNG space, converting its Golden Pass LNG import terminal to an export facility in 2014. With commissioning expected by the end of 2025, and the first cargo to be shipped in the first quarter of 2026, the 18 million mt/year terminal will become the largest single-phase LNG export facility in the U.S. QatarEnergy Trading will market its 70 percent stake, making it the third-largest buyer of U.S. LNG. Yet despite its early lead, QatarEnergy has opted not to expand further in the U.S., the world's leading LNG exporter. Qatar is instead prioritizing its domestic expansion plans that will nearly double LNG capacity to 142 million mt/year by 2030. Combined with its stake in Golden Pass, QatarEnergy's total gross LNG output will amount to nearly 160 million mt/year, putting it firmly in second place after the U.S. and ahead of Australia. QatarEnergy was an early mover into the U.S. LNG space Read: UAE and Kuwait enhance partnerships in AI, energy, transportation through strategic MoUs Growing LNG footprint in the U.S. While QatarEnergy is focusing on domestic expansion, Abu Dhabi's ADNOC and its subsidiaries are aggressively growing their U.S. LNG footprint. ADNOC's international arm, XRG, acquired an 11.7 percent stake in the $14.8 billion Rio Grande LNG project in Texas and signed a 1.9 million mt/year offtake deal for a future train. It also holds options for further equity expansion. Meanwhile, Mubadala Energy recently took a 24.1 percent stake in SoTex, which plans to build the 9.3million t/year Commonwealth LNG terminal in Louisiana. The UAE was the first Gulf Arab state to export LNG , with the first cargo shipped from Das Island in 1977. However, with capacity of up to 6 million mt/year, ADNOC is a minnow when compared with QatarEnergy. Even when the 9.6 million mt/year Ruwais LNG project comes online in 2028, total capacity will remain less than 16 million mt/year. Aramco, the newest Gulf entrant in LNG, began building its portfolio through a 49 percent stake in MidOcean Energy, which holds assets in Australia and Peru. MidOcean is pursuing a 30 percent stake in the planned 16.45 million mt/year Lake Charles LNG project. Aramco itself has signed a sale and purchase agreement for 1.2 million mt/year from Rio Grande Train 4 and is eyeing equity in two more U.S. projects: A 25 percent stake and 5 million mt/year offtake from Sempra's Port Arthur Phase 2, and a potential role in Woodside's 16.5 million mt/year Louisiana LNG project, which reached FID in April. Nasser said Saudi Aramco aims to secure 7.5 million mt/year of U.S. LNG offtake by 2030. Qatar is prioritizing its domestic expansion plans that will nearly double LNG capacity to 142 million mt/year by 2030 Clean energy transition The focus on gas and LNG, both domestic and international, is borne out by data showing robust demand for the cleaner of the fossil fuels in coming decades. Shell, in its LNG Outlook 2025 released in February, raised its forecast for 2040 global LNG demand to 630-718 million tons, at its midpoint, an increase of over 60 percent from the 2024 forecast of 407 million tons. With demand growth likely to lag supply capacity additions from 2026 through to at least the end of the decade, most analysts expect a period of sustained low prices. However, lower prices should spur a new wave of import projects, locking in demand for decades. Of this new demand, some 16 million mt/year will be from LNG-powered shipping, a 60 percent hike versus last year's forecast of 2030 demand, and four times 2024 demand of just over 4 million mt. In terms of the top global supplier, 'The USA is set to extend its lead as the world's largest LNG exporter, potentially reaching 180mn t/y by 2030 and accounting for a third of global supply,' the report said. Trump has been pressing the European Union to buy more U.S. LNG and there has been an increase in U.S. LNG imports into Europe, replacing Russian gas. U.S. LNG exporters can expect to grow their share of the European market in the second half of the decade after a new EU directive comes into effect. The EU plans to end all imports of Russian gas by the end of 2027, including both pipeline gas and LNG, as part of its REPowerEU initiative. Abu Dhabi's ADNOC and its subsidiaries are aggressively growing their U.S. LNG footprint Eyes on Asia as the bigger prize For the Middle Eastern exporters, the focus is on Asia, the biggest growth market for both oil and gas. QatarEnergy deputy chairman, president, and CEO Saad Sherida Al Kaabi has said that he does not see the growth in U.S. LNG capacity as a challenge. 'I think U.S. volumes are going to go to certain markets that are mostly in Europe and South America, and our volumes will predominately be serving Asia,' he said at the Qatar Economic Forum on May 20. Qatari exports to Europe have fallen in recent years as U.S. exports to the continent have swelled. Qatar, meanwhile, has deepened its relationship with China, with Beijing emerging as the largest buyer of Qatari LNG and a major partner through long-term supply deals. The UAE's ADNOC, which recently opened offices in Beijing, has also started marketing LNG from Ruwais. It signed a contract with Chinese private-sector energy distribution firm ENN Natural Gas for 1 million mt/year for 15 years from 2028, finalizing a preliminary agreement reached in 2023. Another sales deal was with state firm Zhenhua Oil for a reported 800,000 mt/year from 2026. While Zhenhua is a new entrant into the LNG sector, it is an established partner of ADNOC, having acquired a 4 percent stake in the 2 million b/dADNOC Onshore concession in 2018. While Qatar remains the region's LNG heavyweight, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are positioning themselves to become global players by tapping into the growing U.S. LNG sector. For more op-eds, click here
Zawya
an hour ago
- Zawya
Spreads set for Saudi National Bank's USD T2 notes as books near $4bln
Saudi National Bank's US dollar-denominated fixed rate tier 2 capital notes have spread set at US Treasury plus 200 basis points (bps), tighter than Initial price thoughts (IPTs) in the UST + 235 bps area. Books are currently over $3.9 billion (excluding JLM interest). The Reg S 10-year non-call 5 notes are being issued under the bank's $10 billion Euro medium Term Note programme. The issuer is SNB Funding Ltd. with Saudi National Bank the guarantor. (Writing by Brinda Darasha; editing by Daniel Luiz)
