Egypt: BP Awarded New Offshore Exploration Block in Western Mediterranean https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3730546/egypt-bp-awarded-new-offshore-exploration-block-western-mediterranean
Egypt: BP Awarded New Offshore Exploration Block in Western Mediterranean
A map showing the concession area Egypt granted to BP to explore for gas in the western Mediterranean. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
BP has won gas exploring rights in Egypt's offshore King Mariout concession in the western Mediterranean, the British-based company said in a statement on Tuesday.
This comes following its successful participation in 2021’s limited bid round organized by the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company.
The concession area is located approximately 20 kilometers west of the Raven field in the Mediterranean Sea within western Nile Delta area. It offers potential for material gas discoveries that could be developed using existing infrastructure.
The area covers around 2,600 square km at a depth of between 500 and 2,000 meters.
BP owns 100% of the exploration rights area there, which enhances the chances of developing future gas discoveries by utilizing the existing infrastructure, the statement added.
It quoted BP’s North Africa Regional President Karim Alaa as saying that the new award, following EGY-MED-E5 block award in early 2022 to an equally owned partnership between BP and Eni, will leverage existing infrastructure to continue delivering hydrocarbons for Egypt’s growing gas market.
BP has been active player in the Egyptian energy industry since 60 years investing more than $35 billion.
Shippers Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd to Resume Some Sailing Through Suez Canalhttps://english.aawsat.com/business/5293081-shippers-maersk-and-hapag-lloyd-resume-some-sailing-through-suez-canal
Shippers Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd to Resume Some Sailing Through Suez Canal
Shipping containers pass through the Suez Canal in Suez, Egypt (Reuters)
Shipping groups Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd will shift their AE15 Gemini service to the trans-Suez route instead of sailing around Africa's Cape of Good Hope, the Danish shipping giant Maersk said on Monday.
The Asia-Europe trade corridor through the Suez Canal was abandoned by most shippers after attacks in the Red Sea by Yemen's Houthis. That forced them to take the much longer trip around Africa's Cape of Good Hope, but shipping companies are now considering a return to the Red Sea route.
“This joint decision with Hapag-Lloyd comes after thorough assessments of the security situation in the Red Sea area and marks a step towards a gradual return to the trans-Suez corridor,” Maersk's statement said.
Changes to the AE15 service, which connects Asia, the Mediterranean and Europe, will reduce the duration of the passage by four weeks, a Hapag-Lloyd spokesperson said.
Last month, the United States and Iran have signed a 14-point agreement aimed at ending the war. The agreement paved the way for calm in the region and the Red Sea.
The route through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea is the fastest linking Europe and Asia and accounted for 10% of global seaborne trade until the attacks began, data from Clarksons Research show.
The longer journeys around Africa drove up shipping rates, making freight more expensive.
Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd do not have plans to change any other Gemini services, Maersk said, adding that they would continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East.
“Any alteration to services within the Gemini Cooperation will remain dependent on the ongoing stability in the Red Sea area and absence of any escalation in conflicts in the region,” the company added.
Shares in Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd were down 5.8% and 2.7% respectively at 12:51 GMT.
“We view this as the first step that will pave the way for a full return to the Red Sea by the end of this year,” Jyske Bank analyst Haider Anjum said in a note to clients.
“A full return, and thus more efficient capacity management, combined with the prospect of new ships being delivered in 2027 and 2028, should put pressure on freight rates and, consequently, on shipping companies' earnings.”
AI Is Reshaping Saudi Arabia's Venture Capital Landscapehttps://english.aawsat.com/business/5292798-ai-reshaping-saudi-arabias-venture-capital-landscape
AI Is Reshaping Saudi Arabia's Venture Capital Landscape
The words "Artificial Intelligence" are seen alongside a keyboard and robotic hands in this illustration. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabia is moving rapidly to cement its position as the region's leading hub for venture capital. That ambition was reflected in a record 38 percent increase in the number of investors backing Saudi startups, bringing the total to 194, driven by a 65 percent rise in international investor participation.
Reflecting this momentum, Amal Dokhan, Managing Partner at global investment firm 500 Global, which manages $2.3 billion in assets, outlined the contours of the Kingdom's evolving investment landscape in an exclusive interview with Asharq Al-Awsat. She said artificial intelligence is no longer simply an added feature but has become the primary tool for reshaping business models and building sustainable competitive advantages that will pave the way for the region's next generation of billion-dollar companies.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Global AI Show, held in Riyadh on June 29 and 30, Dokhan said Saudi Arabia offers a rare combination of qualities that investors seek. These include strong government support for innovation, a digitally savvy population, abundant capital, and ambitious goals to diversify the economy.
She added that what makes the Saudi market particularly attractive is that it is not only witnessing broader adoption of emerging technologies but also a simultaneous transformation of business models across multiple sectors. This creates opportunities for founders to build companies capable of redefining their markets rather than merely offering incremental improvements.
Betting on Artificial Intelligence
Dokhan expects the region's next wave of billion-dollar technology companies to emerge in sectors that align with Saudi Arabia's strategic priorities. These include AI-powered enterprise software, fintech infrastructure, health technology, logistics and supply chain technologies, climate and energy technologies, industrial technologies, and platforms that support the digital transformation of government entities and large enterprises.
She noted that 500 Global is placing increasing emphasis on startups developing the infrastructure needed to enable AI adoption, rather than companies that simply add AI as another feature within existing products. She added that the most valuable companies will be those with proprietary data, control over core business workflows, or distribution channels whose value increases as AI adoption expands.
Building a Sustainable Competitive Advantage
On improving startup economics, Dokhan explained that lowering customer acquisition costs is not simply a matter of reducing marketing spending. Instead, it requires building systems that make customer acquisition more efficient as a company grows.
She said AI and automation help improve customer targeting and qualification, streamline onboarding, and strengthen customer retention, increasing conversion rates instead of relying on higher marketing expenditures.
Dokhan stressed that technology alone no longer provides a sustainable competitive advantage as AI tools become more widely available. Instead, differentiation increasingly depends on proprietary customer data and insights, strong brand trust, and robust distribution channels.
She added that the strongest companies are not those focused solely on reducing customer acquisition costs, but those that successfully balance customer lifetime value against acquisition costs. Every customer interaction should generate data that helps improve products, enhance the user experience, and reduce future acquisition costs, creating a competitive advantage that is difficult for rivals to replicate.
Scaling Efficiently
On scalability, Dokhan said venture capital investors are looking for companies that can expand their customer base and enter new markets while growing revenue faster than operating expenses. In other words, business expansion should not be matched by a proportional increase in costs.
She added that investors seek founders who build scalable operating systems rather than businesses whose growth depends primarily on hiring more employees. She also stressed the importance of reviewing repetitive functions in customer service, compliance, and reporting with the goal of automating them from the earliest stages.
Achieving this, she said, requires early investment in scalable technology infrastructure, including robust data architecture, API-driven design, and modern cloud-based systems. This enables companies to serve thousands of additional customers without a corresponding increase in staffing or operational infrastructure, ultimately improving profit margins as the business grows.
Operational Resilience and Risk Management
On cybersecurity, Dokhan said cyber risks are no longer merely an issue for IT departments but have become a key factor in company valuations and their ability to attract investment. A security breach or prolonged system outage can affect revenue, customer confidence, regulatory compliance, and access to future funding.
She added that growing reliance on data and artificial intelligence is also increasing the economic cost of security vulnerabilities, making cybersecurity an integral part of business strategy rather than simply a technical requirement.
Dokhan said investors expect founders to approach cybersecurity with the same discipline they apply to financial controls. This includes establishing clear governance frameworks, conducting regular security reviews, developing disaster recovery plans, implementing access controls and data protection measures, providing ongoing employee training, and continuously monitoring systems.
She concluded that operational resilience has become a competitive advantage in its own right. Customers, large enterprises, and investors are placing greater importance on a company's ability to detect, contain, and recover quickly from security incidents, strengthening trust and reinforcing long-term enterprise value.
Saudi Real Estate Market Continues to Rebalance, Selective Recovery Expected in 2nd Halfhttps://english.aawsat.com/business/5292674-saudi-real-estate-market-continues-rebalance-selective-recovery-expected-2nd-half
Saudi Real Estate Market Continues to Rebalance, Selective Recovery Expected in 2nd Half
A view of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. (Reuters)
The slowdown recorded by official indicators in Saudi Arabia’s real estate market during the first half of this year did not surprise observers. Rather, it reflected the practical unfolding of a “rebalancing” phase whose signs began to emerge in 2025.
With major regulatory changes, such as parcel-based real estate registration coming into effect, investors and developers are now recalculating and watching the market carefully, ahead of a second half that experts expect to be led by real demand in residential projects and integrated logistics sectors.
Data from the Saudi Ministry of Justice’s Real Estate Market, covering property transfers, showed that the total value of real estate transactions fell in the first half of 2026 to $21.9 billion, or 82.2 billion riyals, compared with $45.1 billion, or 169.4 billion riyals, in the same period of 2025 — a 51.5 percent decline, the steepest among the indicators.
Transaction activity also slowed, with the number of deals falling to 161,900 from 220,000 a year earlier, a decline of 26.4 percent. The drop extended to the number of traded properties, which fell from 204,900 to 138,600, down 32.4 percent.
The total traded area also declined to 1.625 billion square meters from 2.088 billion square meters in the first half of 2025, a fall of 22.2 percent.
Prices, however, showed relative resilience compared with transaction volumes. Official data showed the average price per square meter fell to 1,965 riyals from 2,217 riyals a year earlier, down 11.4 percent. The highest recorded price per square meter also dropped to 330,578 riyals from 453,124 riyals, a decline of about 27 percent.
Reassessment phase
Real estate expert and appraiser Ahmad Al-Faqih told Asharq Al-Awsat that the decline in transaction value and volume was “very logical” given two decisive developments in recent months: regional geopolitical events represented by the US-Iran war, and the actual impact of government decisions aimed at rebalancing the market.
Both were reflected quantitatively and qualitatively in trading activity, he said.
Al-Faqih added that it was important to distinguish between traded and non-traded assets, noting that the exchange’s indicators show many investors have moved their assets into the “non-traded” category as they choose to wait and reposition themselves in light of market developments.
A general view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
He described other economic variables, such as interest rates and financing costs, as “secondary factors” compared with the geopolitical and regulatory files.
“The real estate investor, especially the speculator, is now going through a serious reassessment phase, particularly with the government’s clear direction toward developing the sector and correcting its practices,” he explained. “This approach will help redirect large liquidity flows into genuine development projects and increase housing supply.”
Market resilience
Real estate expert Abdullah Al-Mousa agreed that the more than 51 percent fall in transaction values cannot be read as “a direct reflection of an equivalent decline in prices.” A deeper reading of the indicators is needed, he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Al-Mousa said the market underwent a pivotal institutional shift in the first half of 2026, with the expanded application of parcel-based registration and the transfer of real estate transactions in key areas — foremost among them Riyadh — to the Real Estate Registry system.
This is a major variable that must be considered in annual comparisons, he said.
He pointed to the market’s underlying resilience, saying the 11 percent decline in the average price per square meter, compared with a drop of more than half in transaction values, confirms that the sector has not seen a sharp price correction
Instead, the composition of deals has changed, with fewer billion-riyal transactions and high-value assets, while prices in locations with real demand have remained relatively stable, he remarked.
Al-Mousa said the market is undergoing a phase of “re-sorting,” rather than a broad price correction. Liquidity has become more selective, and investors are increasingly turning toward high-quality assets with stronger investment feasibility.
Looking ahead, he expects the second half of 2026 to bring gradual, qualitative improvement in real estate activity, while ruling out a quick return to the record transaction levels of previous years.
The sector is in a transitional phase driven by regulatory reforms, greater transparency and a more advanced legislative framework — factors that strengthen investor confidence over the medium term, even if their full impact takes time to appear, he went on to say.
Al-Mousa said integrated residential projects that meet actual demand, along with the logistics and industrial sectors supported by economic growth and major projects, are likely to lead growth in the coming period.
The market’s success in the next phase, “will not be measured only by transaction volume and quantity, but by its ability to attract quality investment, raise asset-use efficiency and achieve a sustainable balance between supply and demand,” he added.
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