Cairo- November 9, 2022: Qalaa Holdings organized two discussion sessions, titled "The Power of the Trio" and "The Trio in Action- The Benban Story" respectively as part of the activities of the Finance Day, at the 27th session of the Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP27), which is being held in Sharm El-Sheikh, from 6 to 18 November, bringing together 197 countries to discuss policies and strategies to accelerate global climate action.

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

Qalaa Holdings  was keen to organize the two panels within the framework of its broad environmental strategy and practices across its various projects that serve environmentally friendly policies and climate change, and its constant endeavor to encourage companies to adopt sustainability practices. In fact, the company contributes a great deal to the adaptation to the negative effects of climate change and aims to reduce greenhouse emissions and climate change, as well as achieve sustainable development.

A group of executive directors and representatives of Qalaa Holdings and its subsidiaries participated in the first panel discussion, led by Dr. Ahmed Heikal, Founder and Chairman of Qalaa Holdings, and Ms. Aliaa Heikal, Chief Financial Officer of Egyptian Refining Company (ERC). Additionally, a number of experts in the fields of finance and energy participated in the second panel, including Dr. Eng. Mohamed El Khayaat, CEO of New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), Ms. Sherine Shohdy, Head of Egypt & Coverage Director North Africa at British International Investment, and Ms. Pakinam Kafafi, CEO of TAQA Arabia.

The two panels discussed the success of cooperation between the public and private sectors in achieving development results, as well as environmental, social and institutional impacts. Qalaa Holdings participated in the panels, representing its subsidiary TAQA Arabia, a full-service energy and utility provider in Egypt. Meanwhile, the International Finance Corporation shared insights on financing clean energy initiatives, and the New and Renewable Energy Authority highlighted the importance of public-private partnerships.

The "The Power of the Trio” panel discussed a number of important topics, including the concept of financing transformative green projects and the triple combo, by aligning the government's vision, smart policy, regulation, and environmentally friendly financing. It also highlighted the importance of the private sector’s participation, as a triple force in achieving successful renewable energy projects and sustainable financing. Moreover, it introduced the concept of a social, environmental and economic “Triple-Bottom Line” with appropriate governance — along with tangible development results during the work on the Benban project, and the power of the trio in financing ERC.

 It’s worth mentioning that Qalaa Holdings emphasized the importance of responsible and green finance in achieving climate action, including achieving Nationally Determined Contributions, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and shifting towards a 42% renewable energy mix by 2035. It also reviewed the success story of financing ERC and shed light on Benban project in Aswan, which represents the largest solar power plant in the world, and includes 32 power stations to produce about 1,650 megawatts of electricity — powering hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses. Benban also eliminated 2 million tons of greenhouse gases annually, created job opportunities and empowered women, within the framework of a strong governance system recognized by the World Bank.  It also reviewed the roadmap being developed by the International Finance Corporation, the New and Renewable Energy Authority and Qalaa Holdings to repeat the success of the project.

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Previous Qalaa Holdings press releases on this subject and others may be viewed online from your computer, tablet or mobile device at qalaaholdings.com/newsroom 

Qalaa Holdings (CCAP.CA on the Egyptian Stock Exchange) is an African leader in energy and infrastructure. Qalaa Holdings builds responsible and sustainable businesses that add value to the economies and societies in which it does business. Formerly known as Citadel Capital, Qalaa Holdings controls subsidiaries in industries including Energy, Cement, Agrifoods, Transportation & Logistics, Mining and Printing & Packaging. To learn more, please visit qalaaholdings.com. 

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