Dubai passes climate torch to Azerbaijan as COP29 opens

A year after the UAE hosted the annual United Nations environmental summit, the torch passed today to Azerbaijan as officials and activists from 197 nations converged on the capital city of Baku for the two-week event known as COP29.

Opening the conference was COP29 President Mukhtar Babayev, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, who said the earth is on a “road to ruin” and beseeched delegates to embrace U.N. goals for transition from fossil fuels. “COP29 is the unmissable moment to chart a new path forward for everyone,” he said.

The focus of this year’s climate summit is finance as estimates for the cost of building out clean energy systems, making cities more resilient to extreme weather, and transitioning factories and transportation systems away from fossil fuels run into trillions of dollars, The New York Times reports.

Much of the attention, however, is on what to expect from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has dismissed global warming as a hoax. Also stirring controversy is Azerbaijan’s economic dependence on oil production, which is drawing protests similar to those against the UAE last year at COP28.

Countries will present their updated national climate action plans, which detail how they plan to reduce emissions. At the end of the conference, which closes on Nov. 22, negotiators will try to ratify a final agreement that will include new commitments to address climate change.

More than 100 heads of state and government were planning to attend, including the leaders of Barbados, Finland, Greece, Kenya, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan. Skipping the event is U.S. President Joe Biden, as well as the leaders of China, India, Brazil, Britain, Germany and France.

Among the speakers at today’s opening event was Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, who was President of COP28. He is also CEO of Abu Dhabi-based national energy company ADNOC and the UAE’s Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology.

“I urge you all to prove once again that we can unite, act and deliver,” Al Jaber said. “Let positivity prevail and let it power the process.”

Saudi Arabia eyes Chile in quest for lithium to supply EV industry

Saudi Arabia’s quest for lithium to power its nascent electric vehicle industry is leading to stronger links with South America, as evidenced by the Future Investment Initiative’s conference in Brazil earlier this month.

Saudi-owned Almar Water Solutions is now looking to form a partnership with Chile’s state mining giant Codelco in its planned Maricunga lithium mining project, Reuters reports.

Almar’s CEO Carlos Cosin told the news agency that the Spain-based firm, which focuses on water solutions for renewable energy production, wants to leverage its technology in the extraction of battery-metal lithium, a water-intensive process.

As part of a Saudi conglomerate, Cousin said Almar would be able to bring in another strong financial partner if included in a consortium to develop the Maricunga salt flat.

The company’s technology can be used in metal separation in the microelectronics industry, direct lithium extraction and battery recycling, he said.

Saudi Arabia ‘ready to invest billions’ in Brazil and LatAm

From food security to professional football, Saudi Arabia is ready to deploy billions of dollars to invest in Brazil and its Latin American neighbors as the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund expands its scope of global investments.

That’s the message being delivered in Rio de Janeiro by Public Investment Fund Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan who opened a three-day conference on Wednesday aimed at cementing the Gulf country’s financial links with resource-rich nations on the South American continent.

“We started investing in Brazil in 2016… in food securities [and] we are interested in investing in technology, renewable energy, and mining, and hopefully in football too,” Al-Rumayyan said as he kicked off the PIF’s Future Investment Initiative Priority Summit at the Copacabana Palace Hotel overlooking the city’s legendary beach.

Touting the sovereign fund’s $2 trillion in assets, Al-Rumayyan, who is also Chairman of Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil company; English soccer club Newcastle United and the two-year-old LIV Golf tournament, said the kingdom is particularly interested in companies that are developing infrastructure for artificial intelligence in the Southern Hemisphere.

“We should look for solutions [as to] how to power the AI revolution through renewable energy,” he said, “Brazil is well-positioned to be one of the major players. What you need is the right regulations and government backing, along with an investment mix.”

Brazilian Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira said the kingdom intends to invest some $15 billion in Brazil.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva followed Al-Rumayyan onstage, telling the conference’s 1,500 participants that his visit to Riyadh last November provided “tremendous impetus” for collaboration with Saudi Arabia.

“We are not just the Brazil of soccer or Brazil of the violence,” Lula said. “We are also the Brazil of the men and women who want to grow and develop.”

Future Investment Initiative decamps to Brazil amid kingdom’s push into Latin America

Saudi Arabia’s Future Investment Initiative, which hosts the annual “Davos in the Desert” gabfest, begins its first gathering in Latin America today.

Following a buzzy meeting of FII PRIORITY in Miami earlier this year, the kingdom is broadening its sphere of influence with a summit drawing some of South America’s biggest names in business and government to the Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro.

This iteration will delve into climate action, the Gulf’s emergence among the BRICS nations and new technology. 

FII, which counts the Public Investment Fund as a founding partner, is bringing together powerbrokers amid a flurry of trade activity between Saudi Arabia and Brazil.

The two countries have discovered common ground on food security, mining and aviation, with Brazil hitting a 10-year high in export activity to the kingdom in 2023. 

The most recent deals include an agreement between Lulu, the Middle East’s biggest supermarket chain, and Brazil’s trade agency to promote Brazilian foodstuffs in the Saudi market, signed last week.

In May, Brazilian mining giant Vale sold a 10% stake of its base metals unit for $2.5 billion to Manara Minerals, a joint venture between Saudi mining firm Ma’aden and the PIF.

That same month, Brazilian aviation company Embraer inked cooperation agreements in the kingdom, with the airplane manufacturer planning to build or assemble its aircraft in Saudi Arabia under the deal.

All of this comes as the kingdom mulls opening an investment office in South America’s biggest economy.

Speakers on the agenda at this FII gathering include Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Governor of the Public Investment Fund and Chairman of the FII Institute; Reema Bint Bandar Al Saud, Saudi Ambassador to the U.S.; Faisal Bin Bandar Al Saud, Chairman of the Saudi Esports Federation; and Mike Pompeo, former U.S. Secretary of State.

Also scheduled to speak are Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih, Saudi Minister of Investment; Martin Sorrell, Executive Chairman of S4 Capital Group; André Esteves, Chairman of BTG Pactual; Bernard Mensah, President of International at Bank of America; and Julia Dias Leite, CEO of the Brazilian Center for International Relations.