Page 13 - DMEA Week 09 2023

DMEA NEWS IN BRIEF DMEA

POLICY sectors. Cabinet Secretary
Trump imposed the 2018 order after He added that with the aid of the EIB,
New US sanctions target abandoning the 2015 nuclear deal, which Kenya intends to invest in projects that will
develop green hydrogen as part of the Kenya
reined in Iran’s nuclear program in return for
Iran’s oil, petchems trade relief from economic sanctions. President Joe Energy Roadmap 2040.
Through the roadmap, Kenya plans
Biden’s administration has tried but failed to
The United States imposed sanctions on revive the pact over the last two years. to accelerate low-carbon transition while
Thursday on firms it said had transported On Thursday, the Treasury Department ensuring the delivery of power that is reliable
or sold Iranian petroleum or petrochemical issued a general license authorizing limited and affordable. Specifically, the country
products in violation of US restrictions, transactions with the 20 sanctioned vessels intends to increase installed capacity to 100
including two companies based in China. under what it called a “wind-down” period GW by 2040, which entails attracting more
The sanctions are part of a Washington through June 29, a document on its website than $300bn worth of energy investments.
push to curb Iranian oil smuggling and come showed. Kenya reckons that development of green
as efforts to revive Tehran’s 2015 nuclear ARAB NEWS hydrogen has the potential to enable 100%
deal have stalled in part due to increasingly of the country’s energy needs to be supplied
strained ties between the Islamic Republic and EIB supports Kenyan quest by clean power, which is critical in providing
the West. affordable power for economic development
In a statement, US Secretary of State for clean energy and industrial growth.
Antony Blinken said the sanctions target Over the last decade, the EIB has provided
11 firms and 20 affiliated shipping vessels Kenya’s efforts to invest in renewable energy more than $5.3bn for energy investment
that had facilitated Iran’s petroleum and have received a major boost from the across Africa, including $418m for
petrochemical trade. European Investment Bank (EIB) which geothermal, wind and solar investment as well
“These designations underscore our intends to strengthen support for green as grid investment in Kenya.
continued efforts to enforce our sanctions hydrogen investment in the country. BNE
against Iran,” Blinken said. EIB, which is the world’s largest
Iran’s mission to the United Nations in multilateral bank and leading global financier
New York accused the Biden administration of renewable energy, signed a joint declaration COMPANIES
of “basically repeating the failed maximum on renewable clean hydrogen with the East
pressure policy of the former US government,” Africa nation that will see the lender extend Aramco completes
referring to former President Donald Trump’s $1.8m to the country for onward lending to
administration. green hydrogen investors. acquisition of Valvoline’s
“Iran has gotten used to these sanctions, The funding will help accelerate Kenya’s
but if the US wants to return to JCPOA green hydrogen ambitions as the country seek products business
(the Iran nuclear deal) one day, it will be to transition to renewable energy. Currently
challenging for the US government to lift all of the country produces more than 90% of its Saudi Aramco has completed the acquisition
them,” Iran’s UN mission told Reuters. electricity from hydropower, geothermal of the Valvoline Inc. global products business
Two of the sanctioned firms are based energy, solar and wind energy as well as for $2.65bn, through one of its wholly-owned
in China, according to the Treasury biomass. subsidiaries.
Department’s Office of Foreign Assets “Kenya has some of the best renewable With this acquisition, which follows the
Control. The sanctions freeze the firms’ US energy sources in the world if the storage signing of an equity purchase agreement by
assets and generally bar Americans from components were equally developed. The the companies announced on Aug. 1, 2022,
dealing with them. route to storage has the potential to develop Aramco accelerates its aim to become one of
The US issued the sanctions under a 2018 green hydrogen to deliver sustainable, green the world’s preeminent integrated, branded
US executive order that restored sanctions and inclusive growth,” said Njuguna Ndung’u, lubricants players.
targeting Iran’s oil, banking and transportation National Treasury and Economic Planning Aramco will now own the Valvoline brand
with respect to the products business, and
Valvoline Inc. will own the Valvoline brand
with respect to its retail services business.
Aramco and Valvoline Inc. plan to work
together to continue to grow the Valvoline
brand equity globally.
Valvoline Global Operations, which will
continue to be headquartered in Lexington
Kentucky, is a worldwide leader in automotive
and industrial solutions, creating future-
ready products and best-in-class services for
partners around the globe.
Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani, Aramco
Executive Vice President of Downstream,
said: “This acquisition will advance our
international lubricants growth strategy, and
leverage our global base oils production and

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