Arab Parliament Selects NEOM as Best Arab Project

Visitors watch a 3D presentation during an exhibition on NEOM in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 25, 2017. (Reuters)
Visitors watch a 3D presentation during an exhibition on NEOM in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 25, 2017. (Reuters)
TT
20

Arab Parliament Selects NEOM as Best Arab Project

Visitors watch a 3D presentation during an exhibition on NEOM in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 25, 2017. (Reuters)
Visitors watch a 3D presentation during an exhibition on NEOM in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 25, 2017. (Reuters)

The Arab Parliament has selected the Saudi city of NEOM as the best Arab project to achieve sustainable development in 2022.

NEOM was chosen for promoting the concept of the future and sustainable development, as one of the models for building generations, creating smart cities, and supporting efforts to preserve the environment.

NEOM, located in the far northwest of the Kingdom in the Emirate of Tabuk, is a Saudi project aimed at building the first cognitive city with world-class technology. It was launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in October 2017 and stretches over an area of 460 kilometers on the Red Sea coast.

NEOM recently announced the building of a new city called The Line, which is projected to become a global hub for generating clean energy.

A model for extraordinary living, The Line will paint a revolutionary picture for what future communities would look like and how they would come to live in harmony with nature, NEOM CEO Nadhmi Al-Nasr said in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat last month.

He added that the pedestrian city would offer an attractive environment for innovators, entrepreneurs and investors.

An official statement said construction would start in Q1 2021 on the project, which is expected to contribute $48 billion to the Kingdom's GDP and provide 380,000 job opportunities by 2030.



Ukraine Receives First 3 Bln Euro Tranche of G7 Loan from EU

An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
TT
20

Ukraine Receives First 3 Bln Euro Tranche of G7 Loan from EU

An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich

Ukraine received its first 3 billion euro ($3.09 billion) tranche of the European Union's portion of the Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) loan agreed for Ukraine by the G7 group of countries, its prime minister Denys Shmyhal said on Friday.

It was the first tranche of EU loan secured by profits from frozen Russian assets, Shmyhal wrote on the Telegram app.

G7 leaders in October agreed to provide some $50 billion in loans to Ukraine via multiple channels.
"Today, we deliver €3 billion to Ukraine, the 1st payment of the EU part of the G7 loan. Giving Ukraine the financial power to continue fighting for its freedom – and prevail," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on social media platform X.

In other economic news, Ukraine's steel output rose by 21.6% in 2024 to 7.58 million metric tons, its producers union said late on Thursday, though fighting that is closing in on the country's only coking coal mine threatens to slash volumes this year.

Steel production has already suffered since Russia's invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, which has led to the destruction of leading steel plants.

Ukraine, formerly a major steel producer and exporter, reported a 70.7% drop in output in 2022 to 6.3 million tons. It fell to 6 million tons in 2023.

The steelmakers' union said in October the potential closure of the Pokrovsk mine, Ukraine's only coking coal mine, could cause steel production to slump to 2-3 million metric tons in 2025.
Advancing Russian forces are less than 2 km (1.24 miles) from the mine, Ukrainian military analyst DeepState said on Friday.
The mine's owner, steelmaker Metinvest BV, said last month it had already halted some operations at the mine and two industry sources said it was operating at 50% capacity.
Producers have said they hope to find coking coal from elsewhere in Ukraine should the mine be seized by Russian troops, but imports would inevitably be needed which would raise costs.