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• 
  Abu Dhabi to make mark in esports with NIP Group tie-up

  23 January 2025

  The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) has entered a multi-year partnership with gaming and esports company, NIP Group, to expand its efforts in gaming, media, and entertainment.

  The five-year agreement will see US-based NIP Group establish its global headquarters in Abu Dhabi, “contributing to local employment in the esports and gaming sectors.”

  Additionally, the company will expand its capabilities across key business verticals in the region, including esports operations, creative studios, game publishing, and events and talent management.

  ADIO will also work directly with NIP Group to collaborate on the development of a gaming and esports strategy.

  Central to the partnership is the establishment of a local esports academy, alongside the launch of creative studios dedicated to developing games. New intellectual property, including the development of “Made in Abu Dhabi” content featuring Al Ain and Al Dhafra, will be registered locally.

  Badr Al-Olama, director-general of ADIO, has said: “ADIO’s partnership with NIP Group reflects our shared ambition to lead creative industries at the cutting edge of entertainment and technology.

  “Welcoming NIP Group to Abu Dhabi marks a significant milestone in this endeavor, and we look forward to jointly shaping a vibrant future for the esports and gaming sector in the region and beyond.”

  Hicham Chahine, co-CEO of NIP Group, added: “We’re delighted to partner with ADIO as we bring together our eastern and western businesses, establishing a truly global headquarters that represents not only our growth as a company but the growth of gaming and entertainment in the Middle East.”

  Esports has grown significantly in the Middle East in recent years, with Saudi Arabia particularly becoming a major player in the sector.

  Last year, the Kingdom staged the inaugural Esports World Cup in Riyadh, while the country will host the first Olympic Esports Games this year.

  The Esports World Cup will be staged annually in Riyadh and was launched by Saudi Arabia’s crown prince and prime minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz.

  Bin Salman stated that the event was part of a wider scheme to accelerate the country’s National Gaming and Esports Strategy.

  The tournament is run by the Esports World Cup Foundation, a non-profit organisation set up by the Saudi government. 

  The Saudi government has, in recent years, invested heavily in esports, including forming tournament organizer conglomerate ESL Faceit Group, the Gamers8 esports festival, Chinese tournament operator and esports company VSPO, and buying stakes in various game developers.

  In September 2022, the Saudi government-owned Savvy Games Group announced $38 billion of investment plans in esports and gaming.

  The article was first published by GlobalData

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• 
  Rak Properties plans $1.3bn developments in 2025

  22 January 2025

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  Ras Al-Khaimah-based real estate developer Rak Properties has announced plans to launch 12 new residential developments in the northern emirate of the UAE in 2025.

  The new developments, including residential buildings, branded residences and villas, will mainly be launched in Mina, a beachfront development in Mina Al-Arab.

  Mina spans an area of about 4 million square metres (sq m) and comprises three districts: Raha Island, Hayat Island and Lagoons.

  As part of its AED5bn ($1.3bn) plan, Rak Properties has launched Mirasol, a twin-tower residential development with 339 units, including studios, apartments and duplexes.

  The project is scheduled for completion in 2028.

  In May last year, Rak Properties announced plans to develop Raha Island.

  The new island development will include hotels and branded residences, marinas, beach clubs, a wellness centre, retail outlets and leisure facilities.

  Rak Properties is also developing Hayat Island, located next to Raha Island.

  The Ras Al-Khaimah real estate market has seen significant investments in recent years. Several new projects have been announced, including in the Al-Marjan Island area.

  Wynn Al-Marjan Island, set to become the UAE’s first gaming resort, has buoyed real estate demand in the northern emirate. The resort is under construction and is anticipated to be completed by 2027.

  GlobalData expects the construction industry in the UAE to expand by 4.6% in real terms in 2024, supported by improved investments in transport, industrial and residential construction projects. Private sector investments in real estate will also support the industry’s growth in 2024. 

  The residential sector is expected to expand by 4.5% in real terms in 2024 before recording an annual average growth of 2.6% in 2025-28, supported by private investments in the residential housing sector, along with government initiatives to meet rising housing demand in the country.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/13312186/main.jpg

  Yasir Iqbal
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  Saudi Arabia’s 500MW battery plant connects to grid

  22 January 2025

  Saudi Arabia's largest battery energy storage system (bess) has been connected to the kingdom's electricity grid, 11 months after the start of construction.

  The 500MW bess plant is located in Bisha, in Saudi Arabia's southwestern Asir Province. It is the first of many on-grid bess facilities planned in Saudi Arabia.

  These facilities will be procured using either conventional or independent storage provider (ISP) models.

  The Bisha plant, which has a nameplate capacity of 2.615 gigawatt-hours (GWh) but is rated at 2,000 megawatt-hours (MWh), was built by a consortium of State Grid of China and the local Alfanar Company.

  Owned by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC), the plant features 122 prefabricated storage units, designed and supplied by China’s BYD.

  According to an industry source, the unit integrates a 6MW power conversion system alongside four lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery modules, each with a capacity of 5.365MWh.

  The Bishi bess facility is connected to the grid through a 380-kilovolt substation.

  The local Algihaz Holding is the project's operational and maintenance supplier, while SEC subsidiary National Grid Saudi Arabia is the offtaker.

  The project uses LFP, modularised containers designed to Underwriter’s Laboratory and National Fire Protection Association standards to avoid thermal propagation, and a large-scale fire-tested product to CSA TS-800, notes Marek Kubik, director at Enowa, the utility arm of Saudi gigaproject developer Neom.

  Neom is also considering implementing bess plants to complement the gigaproject's planned renewable energy and transmission infrastructure. 

  According to Kubik, eight more bess projects of the same size are expected to come online in Saudi Arabia next year, and a capacity of 33.5GWh is expected before the end of 2026.

  "The driver is the need for significant flexibility as Saudi Arabia rapidly transforms its electricity grid to solar, targeting 50% renewables by 2030 under Saudi Vision 2030."

  Battery IPPs

  Principal buyer Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) recently prequalified 33 firms to participate in the tender for the first phase of its independent bess projects in the kingdom.

  The group one bess – also called ISP – projects will be developed using a build, own and operate model.

  They comprise the following schemes, with a total combined capacity of 2,000MW, equal to about four hours or 8,000MWh of storage:

  • Al-Muwyah bess ISP: 500MW (Mecca)
  • Haden bess ISP: 500MW (Mecca) 
  • Al-Khushaybi bess ISP: 500MW (Qassim)
  • Al-Kahafa bess ISP: 500MW (Hail).

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  Jennifer Aguinaldo
• 
  Alfanar and BYD win 2.5GW battery storage contract

  22 January 2025

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  National Grid Saudi Arabia, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Saudi Electricity Company (SEC), has awarded the local Alfanar Company an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for five battery energy storage system (bess)  facilities with a total combined installed capacity of up to 2,500MW, equivalent to about 10,000 megawatt-hours (MWh).

  China's BYD Auto won the contract for the design; supply; supervision of installation, testing and commissioning; and maintenance of the bess plants.

  MEED previously reported that the planned facilities, each with a capacity of 500MW or about 2,000MWh, are located in – or in proximity to – the following cities and load centres:

  • Riyadh
  • Qaisumah
  • Dawadmi
  • Al-Jouf
  • Rabigh

  The EPC contract value is over $2bn, according to estimates from regional projects tracker MEED Projects.

  The scope includes the construction of bess substations and associated infrastructure.

  The main applications for the planned bess facilities include load shifting, black start, frequency regulation and voltage support.

  They are expected to replace part-load operation of existing power plants by charging and discharging electricity according to system load variations and primary and secondary reserves, among other potential applications.

  In August last year, National Grid Saudi Arabia awarded the EPC contracts for three energy storage systems to Riyadh-based investment group Algihaz Holding.

  The projects are located in Najran, Madaya and Khamis Mushait.

  According to an industry source, the contracts are valued at more than $800m.

  Surging growth

  The overall capacity of deployed bess facilities globally is expected to reach 127GW by 2027, up from an estimated cumulative deployment of 36.7GW at the end of 2023, according to GlobalData.

  The global information services provider named Chinese companies BYD and CATL and South Korean companies LG Energy Solutions and Samsung SDI among the top battery technology providers globally.

  Carmakers Tesla, Volkswagen, Stellantis, General Motors, Mitsubishi Motors and Hyundai were identified as the key end-markets for battery products to date.

  GlobalData expects battery energy storage deployment to increase “due to a large number of countries opting for battery storage systems to enhance their power sector transformation”.

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  Jennifer Aguinaldo
• 
  Oman inaugurates 1GW solar IPPs

  22 January 2025

  Oman's Sayyid Bilarab Bin Haitham Al-Said has inaugurated the Manah 1 and Manah 2 solar power plants in the wilayat of Manah in Al-Dakhiliyah Governorate.

  The state offtaker, Nama Power & Water Procurement Company (Nama PWP), awarded the contracts to develop the two solar independent power producer (IPP) projects in March 2023 to two separate teams.

  A team led by France's EDF Renewables won the contract to develop the Manah 1 IPP, while a team led by Singapore's Sembcorp won the contract to develop the Manah 2 IPP.

  The project company for the 588MW Manah 2 IPP announced that it had reached commercial operations in early January, four months ahead of schedule.

  The projects aim to address environmental goals by increasing the share of renewable energy in Oman from 6.6% to 11%, while also reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 1.4 million tonnes annually, an official statement said.

  The projects' completion represents a significant step towards achieving Oman's 2050 net-zero target.

  The projects will also help to meet the growing demand for electricity by generating sufficient power to supply approximately 120,000 houses.

  Manah 1 and Manah 2 were previously called Solar IPP 2022 and Solar IPP 2023.

  In March 2023, the two developer teams signed 20-year power-purchase agreements with Nama PWP, which was previously known as Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP).

  Located 150 kilometres southwest of Muscat, the Manah 1 and 2 solar projects comprise the second utility-scale renewable energy projects to be tendered by OPWP after Ibri 2, which has been operational since 2021.

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  Jennifer Aguinaldo