Abu Dhabi’s clean energy company Masdar is to work with Socar Green and Acwa Power to explore the development of offshore wind projects in Azerbaijan with capacity of 3.5 gigawatts, to help the country boost its renewable sector.
The three companies signed an initial agreement at the Cop29 climate change summit in Baku to develop new projects in the Caspian Sea. The initiative will mark Azerbaijan’s first foray into the offshore wind sector.
The agreement supports plans by Baku to develop renewable energy, green hydrogen and water desalination projects, the companies said in a statement on Friday.
“Azerbaijan is a key strategic partner for Masdar and the signing of this memorandum of understanding with our partners today paves the way to accelerate the scale of Azerbaijan’s clean energy vision,” said Mohamed Al Ramahi, chief executive of Masdar.
Masdar, owned jointly by Adnoc, Mubadala and the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company – better known as Taqa, is already active in Azerbaijan. Its existing projects include the 230 megawatt capacity Garadagh, the 315MW Neftchala and the 445MW Bilasuvar solar power plants. Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power is also developing the 240MW Khizi-Absheron wind power plant after entering Azerbaijan in 2019.
Azerbaijan, which largely relies on natural gas to meet its energy needs, plans to increase its installed power capacity to 30 per cent from renewable sources by 2030, in an effort to diversify its economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It aims to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
“We aim to unlock the vast offshore wind potential of the Caspian Sea, supporting Azerbaijan’s energy transition targets,” Socar president Rovshan Najaf said.
Countries around the world are boosting investments in the renewable energy sector to cut emissions and limit the rise in global temperatures.
International investment in renewable energy must triple to $1.5 trillion a year by 2030 to meet the global goal of tripling renewables. Despite record spending of $570 billion last year, current national plans are set to deliver only half of the required renewable power growth, the Abu Dhabi-based International Renewable Energy Agency said in a report last month.
To meet the global goals, installed renewable capacity needs to reach 11.2 terawatts by 2030, from the current levels of 3.9TW.
Since Masdar was established in 2006, it has developed and partnered in projects in more than 40 countries, with a mandate to increase its renewable energy portfolio capacity to 100GW by 2030, from about 20GW at present.
This week, it signed an initial agreement with Albania's state power utility Kesh to explore the development of “gigawatt-scale” renewable projects in the country. The joint venture will develop and operate solar, wind and hybrid projects, with potential integration of battery storage, Masdar said. The energy produced is expected to be supplied to the Albanian market and exported to neighbouring countries.
Kandahar%20
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The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
MATCH INFO
Liverpool 2 (Van Dijk 18', 24')
Brighton 1 (Dunk 79')
Red card: Alisson (Liverpool)
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Employment lawyer Meriel Schindler of Withers Worldwide shares her tips on achieving equal pay
Do your homework
Make sure that you are being offered a fair salary. There is lots of industry data available, and you can always talk to people who have come out of the organisation. Where I see people coming a cropper is where they haven’t done their homework.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate
It’s quite standard to negotiate if you think an offer is on the low side. The job is unlikely to be withdrawn if you ask for money, and if that did happen I’d question whether you want to work for an employer who is so hypersensitive.
Know your worth
Women tend to be a bit more reticent to talk about their achievements. In my experience they need to have more confidence in their own abilities – men will big up what they’ve done to get a pay rise, and to compete women need to turn up the volume.
Work together
If you suspect men in your organisation are being paid more, look your boss in the eye and say, “I want you to assure me that I’m paid equivalent to my peers”. If you’re not getting a straight answer, talk to your peer group and consider taking direct action to fix inequality.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Apple%20Mac%20through%20the%20years
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SPECS
Nissan 370z Nismo
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Power: 363hp
Torque: 560Nm
Price: Dh184,500
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Company profile
Name: Tratok Portal
Founded: 2017
Based: UAE
Sector: Travel & tourism
Size: 36 employees
Funding: Privately funded
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
