Middle-East
ION Installs Gulf Region’s first ultra-fast electric vehicle charging stations in Abu Dhabi
In response to growing demand for electric vehicle infrastructure, ION, the UAE-based sustainable transportation joint venture between Bee’ah and Crescent Enterprises, has installed high-power, ultra-fast charging stations with a total capacity of up to 350KW, on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
Capable of charging electric vehicles (EV) through a connection to a user interface unit, the stations can supply combined charging system (CCS) EVs. Through its compatibility with all manufacturers, the stations also solve a common issue with EV charging infrastructure by catering to all types of e-vehicles including buses.
Also read: Luxury car brand Jaguar to go all-electric by 2025
Another major benefit of the ION stations is its offer of the fastest charging times in the UAE, fully charging vehicles in less than 15 minutes on average and reducing user waiting time drastically. They are 25 times faster than a traditional home charger which only supplies up to 7 KW. Featuring less cable work, the stations are also cost-effective and reduce carbon footprint. A forthcoming announcement will be shared when the stations is officially open to accept customers.
Khaled Al Huraimel, Group CEO of Bee’ah and Chairman at ION, said: "This is yet another demonstration of ION’s commitment to supporting the e-mobility network in the UAE. ION is at the forefront of bringing transformative, green mobility solutions to the market, and we are delighted to claim we have installed the Gulf region’s first ultra-fast charging stations. This move will go a long way to promote the mass adoption of EVs which will improve air quality and reduce vehicular pollution in support the UAE’s sustainability ambitions."
Also read: Volkswagen triples electric car sales ahead of climate rules
Nasir Al Shamsi, Director Sustainable Mobility at Bee’ah, said: "We are proud to have pioneered the installation of these ultra-fast charging stations in the region and the UAE, offering EV users convenience and efficiency that was not available before. We are rapidly responding to emerging industry trends and meeting the needs of players across the burgeoning electric transportation network in the UAE. ION’s aim is to continue to facilitate and enhance the network while utilising best-in-class technology, vehicles and infrastructure."
ION is fast-tracking the development of electric transportation in the UAE, and has achieved significant milestones within a few short years since its launch. Within Abu Dhabi, ION manages on-demand electric transportation in Masdar City, matching residents to a fleet of electric vehicles and autonomous electric shuttles through a mobile app.
ION also recently concluded a successful pilot trial of the NAVYA shuttles in the University City of Sharjah as well as launching Sharjah’s first network of public electric vehicle charging stations. In partnership with NAVYA, ION is promoting the use of shared autonomous transport to the MENA region.
Also read: 3DOM ties up with Cosmos Global for electric vehicle assembly plant in Bangladesh
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ION’s electric vehicles and drivers have been deployed, pro bono, for the transport of Sharjah Medical District’s doctors to facilitate home visits and COVID-19 testing. ION’s electric fleet are also utilised for medicine logistics services by University Hospital Sharjah for fast and efficient deliveries.
Railway traffic resumes after deadly crash in southern Egypt
Rail traffic resumed Saturday in southern Egypt, authorities said, a day after two trains collided, killing at least 32 people and injuring 165 others.
The collision of two passenger trains in the province of Sohag, about 440 kilometers (270 miles) south of Cairo, was the latest in a series of deadly accidents involving the country’s troubled railways.
An Associated Press video journalist at the scene saw the reopening of the railway early Saturday. Authorities had replaced the rail track in the area where the collision took place. The damaged tracks and wrecked train cars were on the side of the railway.
The two trains had collided Friday at the town of Tahta, causing two carriages to derail and flip on their side.
Also read: Trains collide in southern Egypt, killing at least 32
Rail officials initially said someone activated the emergency brakes on one of the trains, which was headed to the Mediterranean city of Alexandria. Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly however said no cause has been determined.
Egypt’s rail system has a history of badly maintained equipment and mismanagement, and official figures said there were 1,793 train accidents in 2017.
In 2018, a passenger train derailed near the southern city of Aswan, injuring at least six people and prompting authorities to fire the country's railway chief.
The same year, President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said the government needed about 250 billion Egyptian pounds ($14.1 billion) to overhaul the rail system. Those remarks came a day after a passenger train collided with a cargo train, killing at least 12 people.
A year earlier, two passenger trains collided just outside of Alexandria, killing 43. In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near Cairo.
Egypt’s deadliest train crash was in 2002, when over 300 people were killed after a fire broke out in a train traveling from Cairo to southern Egypt.
Plan made to refloat ship blocking Suez Canal using tide
The company that owns the giant container ship stuck sideways across the Suez Canal said an attempt will be made to refloat the vessel by taking advantage of tidal movements later Saturday.
The Ever Given, owned by Japanese firm Shoei Kisen KK, got wedged Tuesday in a single-lane stretch of the canal, about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) north of the southern entrance, near the city of Suez.
At a news conference Friday night at company headquarters in Imabari, western Japan, Shoei Kisen President Yukito Higaki said 10 tugboats were deployed and workers were dredging the banks and sea floor near the vessel’s bow to try to get it afloat again as the high tide starts to go out.
“We apologize for blocking the traffic and causing the tremendous trouble and worry to many people, including the involved parties,” he said.\
Also read: Egypt races to dislodge giant vessel blocking Suez Canal
Shoei Kisen said in a statement Saturday that the company has considered removing its containers to get the weight off the vessel, but it is a very difficult operation, physically speaking. The company said it may still consider that option if the ongoing refloating efforts fail.
A team from Boskalis, a Dutch firm specializing in salvaging, was working with the canal authority using tugboats and a specialized suction dredger at the port side of the cargo ship's bow. Egyptian authorities have prohibited media access to the site.
“It’s a complex technical operation” that will require several attempts to free the vessel, Lt. Gen. Osama Rabei, head of the Suez Canal Authority, said in a statement.
Attempts earlier Friday to free it failed, said Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, the technical manager of the Ever Given.
The Suez Canal Authority has said it welcomed international assistance. The White House said it has offered to help Egypt reopen the canal. “We have equipment and capacity that most countries don’t have and we’re seeing what we can do and what help we can be," U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters.
An initial investigation showed the vessel ran aground due to strong winds and ruled out mechanical or engine failure, the company said. GAC, a global shipping and logistics company, had previously said the ship had experienced a power blackout, but it did not elaborate.
Bernhard Schulte said two canal pilots had been aboard when the ship got stuck. Such an arrangement is customary, but the ship’s captain retains ultimate authority over the vessel, according to experts.
A maritime traffic jam grew to more than 200 vessels Friday outside the Suez Canal and some vessels began changing course. More than 100 ships were still en route to the waterway, according to the data firm Refinitiv.
Apparently anticipating long delays, the owners of the stuck vessel diverted a sister ship, the Ever Greet, to head around Africa instead, according to satellite data.
Others also are being diverted. The liquid natural gas carrier Pan Americas changed course in the mid-Atlantic, now aiming south to go around the southern tip of Africa, according to satellite data from MarineTraffic.com.
About 10% of world trade flows through the canal, which is particularly crucial for transporting oil. The closure also could affect oil and gas shipments to Europe from the Middle East.
Also read: What we know about a ship blocking the Suez Canal
Oil markets are absorbing the disruption for now, analyst Toril Bosoni said.
“Oil inventories have been coming down but they are still relatively ample,” she told The Associated Press, adding that she believes the impact might be more pronounced in the tanker sector than in the oil industry.
"We are not losing any oil supply but it will tie up tankers for longer if they have to go around” the tip of Africa, she said, which is roughly an additional two-week trip.
At the White House, press secretary Jen Psaki said the U.S. does see "some potential impacts on energy markets from the role of the Suez Canal as a key bidirectional transit route for oil. ... We’re going to continue to monitor market conditions and we’ll respond appropriately if necessary, but it is something we’re watching closely.”
International companies are preparing for the effect that the canal’s blockage will have on supply chains that rely on precise deliveries of goods. Singapore’s Minister of Transport Ong Ye Kung said the country’s port should expect disruptions.
“Should that happen, some draw down on inventories will become necessary,” he said on Facebook.
The backlog of vessels could stress European ports and the international supply of containers, already strained by the coronavirus pandemic, according to IHS Markit, a business research group. It said 49 container ships were scheduled to pass through the canal in the week since the Ever Given became lodged.
The delay could also result in huge insurance claims by companies, according to Marcus Baker, global head of Marine & Cargo at the insurance broker Marsh, with a ship like the Ever Given usually covered at between $100 million to $200 million.
Also read: Experts say Med Sea altered by Suez Canal's invasive species
Capt. Nick Sloane, a maritime salvage expert who led the high-profile effort to salvage the cruise ship Costa Concordia in 2012 told The Associated Press that freeing the cargo ship could take up to a week in the best-case scenario and warned of possible structural problems on the vessel as it remains wedged. That's if dredging works. If it doesn't, he estimated that an operation that involved removing the ship's cargo could take weeks, as it would require 300 barges to carry the ships some 20,000 containers.
Satellite and photos distributed by the canal authority show Ever Given’s bow touching the eastern wall, while its stern appeared lodged against the western wall.
The Ever Given was involved in an accident in northern Germany in 2019, when it ran into a small ferry moored on the Elbe River in Hamburg. No passengers were on the ferry at the time and there were no injuries, but it was seriously damaged.
Hamburg prosecutors opened an investigation of the Ever Given’s captain and pilot on suspicion of endangering shipping traffic, but shelved it in 2020 for lack of evidence, spokeswoman Liddy Oechtering told The Associated Press.
Oechtering also could not say what the investigation had determined the cause of the crash was, but officials at the time suggested that strong winds may have blown the slow moving cargo ship into the ferry.
Egypt races to dislodge giant vessel blocking Suez Canal
Tugboats and a specialized suction dredger worked Friday to dislodge a giant container ship that has been stuck sideways in Egypt’s Suez Canal for the past three days, blocking a crucial waterway for global shipping.
The Ever Given, a Panama-flagged ship that carries cargo between Asia and Europe, ran aground in the narrow canal that runs between Africa and the Sinai Peninsula. It got stuck in a single-lane stretch of the canal, about six kilometers (3.7 miles) north of the southern entrance, near the city of Suez.
The ship, owned by the Japanese firm Shoei Kisen KK, has blocked traffic in the canal, causing headaches for global trade.
Around 10% of world trade flows through the canal, which is particularly crucial for the transport of oil. The closure also could affect oil and gas shipments to Europe from the Mideast.
Also read: What we know about a ship blocking the Suez Canal
At least 150 ships were waiting for the Ever Given to be cleared, including vessels near Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea, Port Suez on the Red Sea and those already stuck in the canal system on Egypt’s Great Bitter Lake, said Leth Agencies, which provides services for the canal.
Internationally, many are getting ready for the effect that the shipping pause will have on supply chains that rely on precise deliveries of goods. Singapore’s Minister of Transport Ong Ye Kung said the country’s port should expect disruptions.
“Should that happen, some draw down on inventories will become necessary,” he said in a Facebook post.
The backlog of vessels could stress European ports and the international supply of containers, already strained by the coronavirus pandemic, according to IHS Markit, a business research group. It said 49 container ships were scheduled to pass through the canal in the seven days following Tuesday, when the Ever Given became lodged.
As of Friday morning, the vessel remained grounded, Leth Agencies added. It remains unclear when the route would reopen.
An Egyptian official at the Suez Canal Authority described the work as complex and said those trying to dislodge the vessel wanted to avoid complications that could extend the canal closure. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to talk to journalists.
The Ever Given’s bow was touching the eastern wall, while its stern appeared lodged against the western wall.
A team from Boskalis, a Dutch firm specialized in salvaging, started working with the canal authority Thursday. The rescue efforts have focused on dredging to remove sand and mud from around the port side of the vessel’s bow.
The Suez Canal Authority, which operates the waterway, deployed tugboats and a specialized suction dredger that is able to shift 2,000 cubic meters of material every hour.
Also read: Experts say Med Sea altered by Suez Canal's invasive species
The Suez Canal Authority said late Thursday that it would need to remove between 15,000 to 20,000 cubic meters (530,000 to 706,000 cubic feet) of sand to reach a depth of 12 to 16 meters (39 to 52 feet). That depth is likely to allow the ship to float freely again, it said.
It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the Ever Given to become wedged on Tuesday. GAC, a global shipping and logistics company, said the ship had experienced a blackout without elaborating.
Evergreen Marine Corp., a major Taiwan-based shipping company that operates the ship, said in a statement that the Ever Given had been overcome by strong winds as it entered the canal from the Red Sea, but that none of its containers had sunk.
The Suez Canal Authority also blamed bad weather for the incident.
Using data from Automatic Identification System trackers on ships at sea, data firm Refinitiv shared an analysis with the AP showing that over 300 ships remained en route to the waterway over the next two weeks.
Some ships now may be changing course to avoid using the Suez Canal. The liquid natural gas carrier Pan Americas changed course in the mid-Atlantic, now aiming south to go around the southern tip of Africa, according to satellite data Friday from MarineTraffic.com.
The Ever Given was involved in an accident in northern Germany in early 2019, when the freighter ran into a small ferry that was moored on the Elbe river in the port city of Hamburg. No passengers were aboard the ferry at the time and there were no injuries, but the collision caused serious damage to the boat.
Also read: Egypt marks Suez Canal's 150th anniversary with artifact exhibition
Hamburg prosecutors opened an investigation of the freighter’s captain and pilot on suspicion of endangering shipping traffic, but shelved it in March 2020 for lack of evidence, spokeswoman Liddy Oechtering told The Associated Press on Friday.
It was not immediately clear whether the two suspects at the time were part of the crew involved in the Suez incident.
Oechtering also could not say what the investigation had determined the cause of the 2019 crash was, but officials at the time suggested that strong winds may have blown the slow moving freighter into the ferry.
Lebanese are gripped by worry as economic meltdown speeds up
Shops closing, companies going bankrupt and pharmacies with shelves emptying — in Lebanon these days, fistfights erupt in supermarkets as shoppers scramble to get to subsidized powdered milk, rice and cooking oil.
10 years on, Syria is a hungry nation
The lines stretch for miles outside gas stations in Syrian cities, with an average wait of five hours to fill up a tank. At bakeries, people push and shove during long, chaotic waits for their turn to collect the quota of two bread packs a day per family.
Oil and gas sector to less likely witness significant disruption in short term: WEC chief
Although the COVID-19 pandemic is causing disruptions across almost all industries, the oil and gas sector is less likely to witness significant disruption in the short term, according to Dr. Angela Wilkinson, Secretary General of the World Energy Council (WEC).
UAE announces $10 billion fund for investments in Israel
Following a constructive phone call His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, has received from Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of the State of Israel, the United Arab Emirates has announced the establishment of a $10 billion fund aimed at strategic sectors in Israel.
DEWA receives 100% 'Paperless Stamp' from Smart Dubai
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) received the 100 percent "Paperless Stamp" from Smart Dubai, in recognition of its success in completing the digital transformation of all its operations and services by 100 percent.
Israeli PM cancels UAE trip, citing disagreement with Jordan
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it called off the Israeli leader’s visit to the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, citing disagreements with the Jordanian government.