SUSTG.com / Research

Discover stories, topics, and more about Saudi Arebia faster.

Recent stories from sustg

MUST-READS

  • Who was Ismail Haniyeh and why is his assassination a blow to Hamas?

    Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader who was killed in Iran, was the tough-talking face of the Palestinian group's international diplomacy as war raged back in Gaza, where three of his sons were killed in an Israeli airstrike. But despite the rhetoric, he was seen by many diplomats as a moderate compared to the more hardline members of the Iran-backed group inside Gaza.

  • Can Saudi Arabia become a “new playground” for energy storage?

    For photovoltaic giants, shifting production capacity to the Middle East is an act of necessity. On June 7, 2024, the US International Trade Commission passed preliminary rulings on the anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations of photovoltaic products from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. This signifies the end of the duty-free policy for some photovoltaic products imported from these four Southeast Asian countries, which began in June 2022, as of June 6 this year. Subsequently, Chinese photovoltaic manufacturers exporting to the US from Southeast Asia will face tariffs.

  • Opinion: Biden’s Legacy and Netanyahu’s Missed Moment?

    While there is already much to discuss regarding Biden’s presidential legacy in the Mideast, an interesting question emerges. If Biden no longer needs to focus on the campaign, can he do something to enhance his legacy before the end of his term? Moreover, could this intersect with Netanyahu’s visit?

  • How Energy Intensive Are Data Centers?

    While the median estimate for data centers, AI-connected offerings and cryptocurrency mining stood at 415 TWh in 2022, already significantly higher than the United Kingdom's electricity demand and on par with the electricity consumption of France, this figure could rise to anything between 620 and 1,050 TWh in 2026. Per the IEA's report, this would be the equivalent "to adding at least one Sweden or at most one Germany" to the most recent estimates. Calculating the median estimated energy use, data centers and associated industries would rival the electricity demand of Japan, which as of 2022 had the fifth-highest in the world after China (8,540 TWh), the United States (4,128 TWh), India (1,463 TWh) and Russia (1,026 TWh).

  • Will growing Saudi investment in Iraq hit Iranian roadblock?

    Gulf Arab investment in Iraq has swelled in recent years, signaling a new and widening rapprochement with Baghdad. Yet, while Iran and Saudi Arabia last year agreed to normalize relations, it is unclear whether Arab investment in Iraq—without stoking Iranian ire—is tenable. Riyadh and its Arab neighbors recognize that any move against their interests by Iran-backed  Iraqi armed groups would undermine the investments that their broader strategy depends on.

  • Will Gulf Camping Survive the Tourism Boom?

    The Gulf Cooperation Council’s “Grand Tours” unified visa is expected to launch by the end of 2024, permitting intercountry travel for foreign nationals living in all six GCC states akin to the European Union’s Schengen Area. With the unified visa projected to ease travel logistics and boost tourism revenue, tourism sectors across the GCC states are strategically working to craft multicountry tourism packages in tandem with the announcement of the visa.

  • Is Saudi Arabia replacing the US with China in its security partner mix?

    The visit fuelled speculation that Riyadh could be looking to Beijing to ease pressure from Washington on issues such as human rights and its stand on the Israel-Gaza war. Defence specialists said the conflict and tensions in the broader Middle East would undoubtedly have been on the agenda – along with Saudi Arabia’s rising arms purchases from China. But Saudi Arabia still saw the United States as its key security partner – even as it increases rapport with and arms purchases from China.

  • Who is Mohammed Deif, the Hamas military chief targeted by Israel?

    Israel has targeted Hamas’ military chief Mohammed Deif in a strike on a designated humanitarian zone in southern Gaza which killed at least 90 Palestinians. It is not clear yet if Deif was among the dead. But who is he? An elusive and powerful figure, Deif is understood to be one of the masterminds behind the October 7 attacks. He has led the Palestinian militant group’s armed wing for more than two decades. If his death is confirmed, Deif would be the highest profile Hamas leader killed since the war in Gaza began nine months ago. Israel has been seeking to dismantle Hamas following the October 7 attacks but with fighting ongoing and senior Hamas figures at large, that goal has seemed distant.

  • Is the Saudi POV different from the rest of the world?

    Contrary to the prevailing notion in other societies that culture is a barrier to innovation and economic progress, the Kingdom remains deeply entrenched in its culture and traditions while emerging as one of the fastest growing economies in the world, positioning itself as the new epicenter of global commerce. Saudi Arabia is young country with 63 per cent of its population being under 30 years old. The youth of the nation celebrate its culture, while driving the change from within.

  • Nike’s first campaign in Saudi Arabia: ‘What if you can?’ video goes viral

    Sportswear giant Nike has come out with its first campaign in Saudi Arabia and the online commercial ‘What if you can?’ has created a lot of buzz on social media. The one-minute and 35-second video is aimed at inspiring young girls in conservative Saudi Arabia to back their potential and take up a sport. The online campaign has already amassed more than 37 million views on YouTube. It opens with schoolgirls playing a game of football and the ball stops at a female student sitting on the steps of a school. One of the students asks her in Arabic, ‘Want to play? Let’s go’.