“More than half the area of Saudi Arabia is desert.”
–Samir Salama, Writing for Gulf News, reports on the ‘scores’ of rescue missions across Saudi Arabia’s three major deserts: Rub’ al Khali (The Empty Quarter); An Nafud (Great Nafud) and; Ad Dahna’. Salama also shares survival tips if one becomes stranded in the desert. [Gulf News]
“Multispeed recoveries are underway in all regions and across income groups, linked to stark differences in the pace of vaccine rollout, the extent of economic policy support, and structural factors such as reliance on tourism… the United States the only large economy projected to surpass the level of GDP it was forecast to have in 2022 in the absence of this pandemic.”
-Gita Gopinath, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Chief Economist, commenting on updated IMF economic projections for global economies. [Nikkei Asia]
“The male drivers we have here are the best in any motorsport category in the world, so it’s an awesome opportunity for us female drivers and a real investment in the development of female racing talent. This is just a dream come true all round.”
–Molly Taylor, Australian driver who was part of the Rosberg X Racing team that won the Extreme E 2021 opening race held in Al-‘Ula. [ABC-Australia News]
“What I think Saudi Arabia is trying to do with this project is create a global exhibition space that says, ‘We have design and innovation, and we are thinking about how to shape the future. It has a respectable ambition behind it. I think Saudi Arabia is trying to say, ‘Allow us to breathe and have a story that is positive about our future.'”
–Angela Wilkinson, CEO of the World Energy Council, commenting on “The Line,” the first phase of the planned zero-carbon community of Neom. [S&P Global]
“Our growth in the region has always been driven by our mission to champion young voices. Given how dynamic youth culture currently is in this part of the world, this move represents a natural expansion of our operations. Having a presence on the ground, with the corresponding insights and storytelling capabilities that gives us, means we are also better placed to partner with leading brands who want to connect with audiences in a meaningful way.”
–Jason Leavy, senior vice president, International Growth, VICE Media Group, on the establishment of its Riyadh office and partnership with the Saudi Research & Marketing Group. [Campaign ME]
“What I think Saudi Arabia is trying to do with this project is create a global exhibition space that says, ‘We have design and innovation, and we are thinking about how to shape the future. It has a respectable ambition behind it. I think Saudi Arabia is trying to say, ‘Allow us to breathe and have a story that is positive about our future.'”
–Angela Wilkinson, CEO of the World Energy Council, speaking with S&P Global Platts about “The Line” concept, a linear smart city and zero-carbon community spanning 170 km of desert and mountains in the planned city of Neom. [S&P Global]
“On such a vital subject as climate change, which impacts the lives and livelihoods of everybody on the planet and of generations to come, we must draw on the same spirit of unity that we have shown in dealing with the oil market over the past year.”
–Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Saudi Energy Minister, in introductory remarks at the OPEC+ virtual meeting taking place today. [Twitter]
“Today the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced its intention to release the full 6 GHz band to unlicensed use meaning that once the process is completed, 1.2 GHz of new spectrum will be made available to Wi-Fi. With this new regulation Saudi Arabia becomes the first country in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region to release the full 6 GHz and will lead the world in total available mid-band license-exempt spectrum.”
–Claus Hetting reports on Saudi Arabia’s Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) press release stating that it would join the USA, South Korea, Chile, Guatemala, Honduras, and Brazil as countries who have allocated the full 6 GHz band to Wi-Fi. [Wi-Fi Now Global]
“This was stranded gas that didn’t have a market. Now, we’ve eliminated the flaring [from that site], and greatly reduced the emissions. And it doesn’t take electricity off the grid, which is getting to be the controversial issue with data centers and Bitcoin mining.”
-Steve Degenfelder, a spokesperson for Wesco Operating Inc., commenting on Wesco’s newly installed gas-adjacent Bitcoin mine. Sergii Gerasymovych, founder of EZ Blockchain, conceived of the idea of using energy from flare gas from natural gas wells (prevalent in shale mining) to mine bitcoin. [Quartz]
“Prince Abdulaziz [Bin Salman] remains ever-concerned — he’s unwilling to say that Covid is in the rear-view mirror. More likely than not, we’re looking at a Saudi rollover of their production cut.”
-Helima Croft, chief commodities strategist at RBC Capital Markets. The Saudi Energy Minister made clear that he wasn’t going to put his faith in predictions of a post-Covid rebound, saying he would only believe in the demand recovery “when I see it.” [Bloomberg]
