The US and Britain are increasingly worried about a rusting oil tanker stranded off Yemen’s coast, and are considering a military-backed mission to end the threat of environmental devastation it poses.
Former UK foreign minister Sir Alan Duncan and Ian Ralby, chief executive of IR Consilium, a maritime security consultancy, said the FSO Safer could spill 1.1 million barrels into the Red Sea at any moment, causing chaos on a vital shipping lane and hurting coastal towns.
The UN has pleaded for years with the Iran-backed Houthi rebels who control nearby ports for access to fix the tanker.
Experts have described a growing appetite in the Biden administration, Britain and elsewhere to act now and avert an ecological disaster.
"Don't miss this chance to get it sorted," Mr Duncan, a former UK minister of state for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, told The National.
“You’ve got to empty it and scrap the ship, otherwise the entire Red Sea is at risk.”
He praised US President Joe Biden’s decision to cut support to Saudi-led military operations in Yemen while taking a tough line on the Houthi rebels, who control territory near the decrepit tanker.
“The enlightened change of policy is a fantastic opportunity to sort this environmental threat," Mr Duncan said.
"It would be negligent if this sensible turnaround in approach is not accompanied by a clear policy to make the Safer safe."
He said he spoke to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson about their shared concerns over the tanker.
A joint clean-up mission could mark an “early success” in Anglo-American ties in the Biden era, said Mr Duncan, a former oil trader who held government jobs including as envoy to Yemen.
“If the UK and the US work together with the UN, there's a good chance of getting this sorted,” he said.
The 45-year-old vessel has been stranded off Ras Isa oil terminal, 60 kilometres north of the Houthi-held port of Hodeidah, since 2015.
The UN says it could spill about 1.1 million barrels of oil into the ocean – four times as much oil as the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster near Alaska.
The UN has repeatedly had to gain Houthi approval for access to fix the tanker, which experts say could rupture at any moment and should be scrapped, only for the rebels to later change their minds.
Houthi officials approved a UN mission late last year, but that now appears unlikely despite the world body spending $3.35 million on recruiting engineers, leasing vessels and acquiring repair gear.
The Houthis say the mission can still go ahead, but analysts say the Iran-backed rebels want the Safer in place to profit from future oil sales and to raise the risks for any seaborne assault by Saudi forces.
Mr Ralby, who advises governments on the vessel, said UN efforts had failed.
He urged the US, Britain and others to push for authorisation of a military operation in the UN Security Council.
The mission would include engineers, backed by armed forces, demining water near the floating storage and offloading platform, and spending one month carefully draining the tanks before the tanker was scrapped, Mr Ralby said.
A major spill would hurt tourism, fishing and desalination plants across Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea and Djibouti, and impede a shipping lane that is used for up to 10 per cent of global trade, he said.
“There is more interest and genuine engagement with this in the last several weeks than there has been the last several years,” Mr Ralby said, referring to policy shifts under the Biden administration.
“There is a groundswell of genuine interest on the part of key governments that would take an interest and actually be able to take some action and maybe move this forward at the UN level.”
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric on Tuesday said there had been “no movement” on access to the vessel.
Any spill would stop shipments of much-needed fuel, food and other supplies from reaching Houthi-held Hodeidah, Mr Dujarric said.
A US State Department official said the Houthis were "negotiating in bad faith" and urged them to let UN engineers aboard to repair the leaky hulk.
"The only real option is to do everything we can to prevent a spill or explosion, and that requires immediate action," the official told The National.
This week, UK Minister of State James Cleverly told Parliament of a £20 billion ($27.6bn) clean-up operation for what would be the “worst ecological disaster probably in our lifetime”.
Company%C2%A0profile
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
When is VAR used?
• Goals
• Penalty decisions
• Direct red-card incidents
• Mistaken identity
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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more from Janine di Giovanni
Joy%20Ride%20
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What is the Supreme Petroleum Council?
The Abu Dhabi Supreme Petroleum Council was established in 1988 and is the highest governing body in Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas industry. The council formulates, oversees and executes the emirate’s petroleum-related policies. It also approves the allocation of capital spending across state-owned Adnoc’s upstream, downstream and midstream operations and functions as the company’s board of directors. The SPC’s mandate is also required for auctioning oil and gas concessions in Abu Dhabi and for awarding blocks to international oil companies. The council is chaired by Sheikh Khalifa, the President and Ruler of Abu Dhabi while Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, is the vice chairman.
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2A)
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How to book
Call DHA on 800342
Once you are registered, you will receive a confirmation text message
Present the SMS and your Emirates ID at the centre
DHA medical personnel will take a nasal swab
Check results within 48 hours on the DHA app under ‘Lab Results’ and then ‘Patient Services’
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)
Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)
Sunday
Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)
Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)
Everton v Liverpool (10pm)
Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
Profile of RentSher
Started: October 2015 in India, November 2016 in UAE
Founders: Harsh Dhand; Vaibhav and Purvashi Doshi
Based: Bangalore, India and Dubai, UAE
Sector: Online rental marketplace
Size: 40 employees
Investment: $2 million
Most%20polluted%20cities%20in%20the%20Middle%20East
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MOST%20POLLUTED%20COUNTRIES%20IN%20THE%20WORLD
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Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059