It’s official: The first sustainability standard for professional services

During an event that helped deepen Tractebel’s footprint in the Middle East and India (MEI) region, our Middle East Regional Manager Thomas Palix and His Excellency Peter Claes, Ambassador of Belgium to the Unites Arab Emirates (UAE), met with global renewable energy and sustainability company Masdar at its headquarters in Abu Dhabi on August 16, 2021. Attendees discussed current Tractebel projects in the Middle East in desalination and renewable energy, the extension of the Framework Agreement and upcoming opportunities in UAE and abroad. Masdar representatives included Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi (Chief Executive Officer), Mohammad Abdelqader El Ramahi (Director, Asset Management & Technical Services, Clean Energy), Yousef Baselaib (Executive Director, Strategy and Corporate Development), and George Shenouda (Head, Strategy and Investment Research). The meeting was organized with the support of the Belgium Embassy in UAE and the Wallonia Export Investment Agency.

If you were asked what makes Advent the most magical time of the year, we would probably get pretty similar answers. Festive lights and decorations, lively festive fairs, gift shopping, exquisite culinary delights and socialising with friends would probably be at the top of the list. But also the euphoria and crowds of December, which can sometimes be quite exhausting, can’t they? Why not make this a time to pause for a moment, think about the true meaning of the holidays and discover the magic of Advent in a different way? Also, by thinking ahead and embracing the joys of Advent in a more sustainable way. Here are some of the things we are trying to do in Slovenia to bring some “green” consciousness to the Advent fairy tale.  In the glow of festive lights – Slovenian cities and towns shine with thousands of festive lights in December. Despite the lavish lighting, energy-saving strings of lights are mostly used and in some places additional energy-saving measures are being taken. In Celje, more attention will be paid to the daytime decoration of the city and its bars and lighting elements will be replaced by non-illuminated features that are less energy-consuming. Murska Sobota, Maribor, Kranj and Slovenj Gradec have also decided to switch off their New Year lighting at night, and the light decorations in Koper will be partially switched off at night, while Jesenice will keep its lights on for a shorter period than usual. Additional or non-essential lighting was also given up in many towns.  Festive decorations for homes and towns.  In addition to the lights, decorated Christmas trees and other types of decorations, mostly made from natural or recycled materials, decorate the towns. Instead of cut down Christmas trees, you will find so-called living trees, which are planted in special pots. In Ljubljana, 10 spruce trees and 79 evergreen trees will be placed on four streets in the city centre and returned to nature after the holidays. Children from local schools and kindergartens often take part in decorating the trees. For example, the children will decorate the forests around Ljubljana and they have invited the city’s residents to contribute their own decorations. In Maribor, you can also join the citizens in decorating the urban woods.

he USD 20 billion liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique, where Indian firms hold a 30 per cent stake, has been suspended indefinitely after an escalation of violence in the area, according to a regulatory filing.
French energy giant Total SE, which is the project lead, declared force majeure on its LNG development in Mozambique, mothballing the investment, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) said in a stock exchange filing Tuesday.