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Saudi Arabia Signs Renewable Energy Cooperation Program with 3 Countries at COP29

Saudi Energy Minister with Presidents of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan (Ministry Website)
Saudi Energy Minister with Presidents of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan (Ministry Website)
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Saudi Arabia Signs Renewable Energy Cooperation Program with 3 Countries at COP29

Saudi Energy Minister with Presidents of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan (Ministry Website)
Saudi Energy Minister with Presidents of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan (Ministry Website)

Saudi Arabia has signed a joint agreement with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan to boost cooperation on renewable energy during the COP29 climate summit in Baku.

The deal focuses on developing and sharing renewable energy technologies, highlighting Saudi Arabia’s push for sustainable solutions under its Vision 2030 strategy. The partnership aims to strengthen regional collaboration and advance clean energy projects.

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman signed the joint energy agreement with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan during COP29 in Baku.

The signing, attended by the presidents of the three nations, aims to boost cooperation on renewable energy projects.

The new agreement focuses on building regional electricity connections using renewable energy to improve energy infrastructure and integrate clean energy into national grids, according to Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Energy.

It also aims to explore joint investment opportunities, supporting regional electricity projects and renewable energy initiatives led by Saudi firm ACWA Power in the three Central Asian countries.

The countries also agreed to share expertise through knowledge exchanges, conferences, and joint working sessions to strengthen cooperation.

This latest signing follows previous energy agreements between Saudi Arabia and Kazakhstan, signed in June 2023, and with Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan in May and August 2023, respectively.

At the event, Prince Abdulaziz also oversaw two strategic deals between ACWA Power and local entities to support renewable energy projects.

One agreement with Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Energy focuses on developing battery energy storage systems (BESS) to improve grid stability.

The other deal, with Azerbaijan’s SOCAR and UAE's Masdar, aims to develop offshore wind projects in the Caspian Sea, the first of its kind in Azerbaijan.

The Saudi Electricity Company, along with network operators from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to develop regional interconnection projects.

Additionally, the company signed another MOU with Azerbaijan’s AzerEnergy to collaborate on electricity transmission and the integration of renewable energy sources into the electrical grid.

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Russia's Central Bank Holds Off on Interest Rate Hike

People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
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Russia's Central Bank Holds Off on Interest Rate Hike

People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Russia's central bank has left its benchmark interest rate at 21%, holding off on further increases as it struggles to snuff out inflation fueled by the government's spending on the war against Ukraine.
The decision comes amid criticism from influential business figures, including tycoons close to the Kremlin, that high rates are putting the brakes on business activity and the economy.
According to The Associated Press, the central bank said in a statement that credit conditions had tightened “more than envisaged” by the October rate hike that brought the benchmark to its current record level.
The bank said it would assess the need for any future increases at its next meeting and that inflation was expected to fall to an annual 4% next year from its current 9.5%
Factories are running three shifts making everything from vehicles to clothing for the military, while a labor shortage is driving up wages and fat enlistment bonuses are putting more rubles in people's bank accounts to spend. All that is driving up prices.
On top of that, the weakening Russian ruble raises the prices of imported goods like cars and consumer electronics from China, which has become Russia's biggest trade partner since Western sanctions disrupted economic relations with Europe and the US.
High rates can dampen inflation but also make it more expensive for businesses to get the credit they need to operate and invest.
Critics of the central bank rates and its Governor Elvira Nabiullina have included Sergei Chemezov, the head of state-controlled defense and technology conglomerate Rostec, and steel magnate Alexei Mordashov.
Russian President Vladimir Putin opened his annual news conference on Thursday by saying the economy is on track to grow by nearly 4% this year and that while inflation is “an alarming sign," wages have risen at the same rate and that "on the whole, this situation is stable and secure.”
He acknowledged there had been criticism of the central bank, saying that “some experts believe that the Central Bank could have been more effective and could have started using certain instruments earlier.”
Nabiullina said in November that while the economy is growing, “the rise in prices for the vast majority of goods and services shows that demand is outrunning the expansion of economic capacity and the economy’s potential.”
Russia's military spending is enabled by oil exports, which have shifted from Europe to new customers in India and China who aren't observing sanctions such as a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil sales.