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QUOTED
“They will be attracted to leave their luxury cars to go and enjoy public transport, because it is world-class standard, high quality and saves time. Five years ago, public transport was seen as something only low-income people would use, but not today. We face in Riyadh the most challenging [traffic]. Congestion is killing productivity.” Khalid Hogail, CEO of Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO), Riyadh Metro aims to break Saudi capital’s car gridlock [Arabian Gulf Business Insight]
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TOP STORY
Saudi Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan and Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Alibrahim were featured in a ‘2025 Budget Forum’ event that detailed Saudi Arabia’s FY 2025 Budget. [more]
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MORE TOP STORYLINES
Via Kareem Chehayeb, Baseem Mroue and Josef Federman in apnews.com: The ceasefire calls for an initial two-month halt to fighting and requires Hezbollah to end its armed presence in southern Lebanon, while Israeli troops are to return to their side of the border. Thousands of additional Lebanese troopsand U.N. peacekeepers would deploy in the south, and an international panel headed by the United States would monitor compliance. The ceasefire began at 4 a.m. Wednesday, a day after Israel carried out its most intense wave of airstrikes in Beirut since the start of the conflict that in recent weeks turned into all-out war. At least 42 people were killed in strikes across the country, according to local authorities. The ceasefire does not address the devastating war in Gaza, where Hamas is still holding dozens of hostages and the conflict is more intractable.
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Via Shuli Ren in channelnewsasia.com: Foreign fund managers have likened Saudi Arabia’s 2016 opening to China’s. I don’t think that’s quite fair, because Saudi is already a developed country in terms of infrastructure. Its roads are well-built and its malls are full of American chain stores – nothing like the 1980s China I knew. What we saw was an open, friendly nation that welcomed visitors. We blended in as well as any foreigners would in Abu Dhabi or Dubai, and we didn’t spot the much-feared religious police. In Medina, we accidentally roamed into the courtyard of the Prophet’s Mosque, not knowing that it was for Muslims only. When a policeman asked us to leave, his tone was apologetic.
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Via Cecilia Jamasmie in mining.com: Vedanta Copper, a subsidiary of India’s Vedanta Limited (NSE: VEDL), has announced plans to invest $2 billion in copper-processing facilities in Saudi Arabia, a fresh boost to the kingdom’s aspirations to establish itself as a global hub for metals and mining. The investment will fund the construction of a state-of-the-art smelter and refinery with an annual capacity of 400,000 tonnes, the company said. Vedanta also plans to develop a facility capable of producing up to 300,000 tonnes per year of copper rods —an essential component in electric cable manufacturing.
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MORE ON THE KINGDOM AND BEYOND
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The study mapped 910 sponsorships in different sports and 1,412 positions in 207 Saudi entities, noting that the kingdom has significantly expanded its web of...[By Ed Dixon via sportspro.com]
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TotalEnergies will build an 0.3 gigawatt (GW) solar park in Saudi Arabia, while EDF Renewables will build...[By America Hernandez via reuters.com]
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The MoU outlines a roadmap to assess the deployment of new DAC systems in the Kingdom, focusing on availability of natural resources including subsurface CO₂...[via climeworks.com]
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The World Bank Group–Saudi Arabia Knowledge Hub (K-Hub) will serve as a platform for knowledge generation and exchange to drive greater development impact for countries....[via worldbank.org]
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Saudi Arabia today is synonymous with megaprojects. Since the launch of the Vision 2030 reform agenda, the Kingdom has rolled out a range of major...[By Zeina Zbibo via arabnews.com]
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Saudi Arabia unveiled five new initiatives, valued at $60 million (SR 225 million), reinforcing the Kingdom's leading role on climate and environment efforts. The initiatives were...[via saudigazette.com]
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A separate power purchase agreement for the Kingdom’s Al Masa’a solar power plant project was signed between the Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC), French state-owned...[via alarabiya.net]
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Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman inaugurated the “One Water Summit” in Riyadh on Tuesday evening in the presence of several presidents and...[via argaam.com]
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As FIFA approaches its December 11 vote to appoint the 2034 World Cup host, the football association is once again under fire for allegedly...[By Dario Sabaghi via law.com]
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Efforts to integrate carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) technologies into construction in Saudi Arabia’s futuristic Neom city have taken a major step forward as CarbonCure...[By Anthony Wright via gasworld.com]
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Saudi Arabia accounts for nearly 75 percent of Middle East investment in climate technology start-ups worldwide, according to a 2023 report by auditor PwC. But its...[via phys.org]
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Saudi Arabia’s Neo Space Group (NSG) is making an acquisition in the Earth observation space, acquiring UP42 from Airbus Defence and Space. Terms of the deal were not disclosed in...[By Rachel Jewett via satellitetoday.com]
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The development of electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure presents a promising pathway to reduce transportation emissions, particularly when integrated with low-carbon...[By Ryan Alyamani and Thomas Gertin via kapsarc.org]
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Biden said the military diminishment of Hezbollah will put pressure on Hamas to return Israeli hostages, and to reach their own ceasefire agreement with Israel—potentially opening...[By Patrick Tucker via defenseone.com]
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A US court has ordered an American military contractor to pay 42M USD in compensation to three Iraqi detainees tortured at the infamous...[via amwaj.media]
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I am Syrian-American. I grew up in a very cross-cultural household, I always like to say our breakfast being both labneh and zaatar and blueberry...[via csis.org]
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