By year’s end, the world's largest hydrogen powered land vehicle will be crawling along the dusty plains of South Africa’s Bushveld region.
Japanese firm Komatsu, which specialises in heavy industrial machines, will dispatch a hauling lorry that weighs almost 300-tonnes to a platinum mine belonging to Anglo American Platinum. These vehicles are common on mining sites, where their vast payload capacity is used to carry ore for processing.
These beasts of machines traditionally use diesel to fire their engines, but this one will be different. It will be powered by hydrogen, through a clean-burning fuel cell. Eventually, Anglo’s entire fleet of mine vehicles will run on emissions-free technology, chief executive Mark Cutifani says.
“We will use wind power or solar to create hydrogen, and then replace the diesel in a truck, we’ll have a carbonless energy footprint.”
Hydrogen is increasingly seen as a clean alternative to fossil fuels. It has no harmful emissions, with its only by-product being water. There are $95 billion worth of hydrogen projects underway across the world, according to PwC.
Fuel cells are highly reliable sources of energy
Countries ranging from the UAE to the US are developing technologies to tap into the most abundant element in the universe as an energy source.
Few countries though have as much to gain from hydrogen as South Africa, which produces around 80 per cent of the world's platinum. The metal provides the catalyst that helps convert hydrogen to electricity through fuel cells.
South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa said the country is developing a 'Platinum Valley', which will foster technologies such as electricity generators and vehicles. Tax incentives will be introduced to encourage local and foreign investment into the sector.
“It presents what I see as a great opportunity to build a local skills base and lead the country into a new era of energy generation and demand for its platinum group metals," Mr Ramaphosa told the parliament.
Hydrogen generators have already been deployed to provide emergency electricity to field hospitals set up to manage a surge in Covid-19 infections, he said.
"Through this Hydrogen South Africa strategy, government and its partners have successfully deployed hydrogen fuel cells to provide electricity in some of our schools, and to build hospitals established as part of the country's Covid-19 response."
The government is under intense pressure to increase energy provision, with business and industry regularly being disrupted by power cuts. The coal dependent grid is straining with age, while providing more than 90 per cent of the national electricity capacity.
The country is in the process of procuring additional renewable capacity, but fuel cells are also likely to be part of the solution, says Zanele Mbatha, chief executive of Bambili Energy, a company which provides emergency generators to field hospitals.
“Fuel cells are highly reliable sources of energy,” she says. “We are so confident in our systems that they can provide the primary power for field hospitals – hospitals that have high care, and intensive care units.”
South Africa is also exploring other hydrogen-related technologies. The national postal service is trialling hydrogen powered motorcycles while the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, a state body, is building a prototype drone it says is capable of staying aloft for up to eight hours, using an electric motor and fuel cell.
Such drones will be useful where cheap aerial surveys are required, such as infrastructure monitoring, geological surveys and even agriculture, says Erik Wegman, a senior CSIR engineer heading the project.
“One can imagine a drone is used to look at a farmer’s crop, to determine which areas need fertilising, which do not – bringing with it a cost saving.”
By using hydrogen, South Africa could even reverse the spending on imported fuel and become a net exporter instead. The country is an ideal environment for wind and solar energy production, which could be used to power the electrolysis plants that produce hydrogen from water.
We can capitalise on this and move ourselves from being an energy importer, to being an energy exporter
Currently, South Africa burns 12 billion litres of diesel a year and 10 billion litres of petrol, most of which is imported.
“We can capitalise on this and move ourselves from being an energy importer, to being an energy exporter,” says Jonathan Metcalfe, head of hydrogen strategy for consultancy firm PwC South Africa.
Adopting a hydrogen strategy could completely revolutionise the South African economy, which is now struggling with record unemployment of 43 per cent, Mr Metcalfe notes. The country already has the infrastructure such as ports and roads needed to bolster exports.
South Africa even has an automotive sector that could potentially manufacture hydrogen-based vehicles for export.
The industrialised world is moving towards hydrogen and South Africa should take advantage of this through the manufacture and exporting of the fuel, Mr Metcalfe adds.
“In order to stimulate the economy, we need additional sources of export revenue. Playing to our strengths in South Africa, hydrogen offers a compelling argument, to generate all-important foreign currency.”
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Anti-semitic attacks
The annual report by the Community Security Trust, which advises the Jewish community on security , warned on Thursday that anti-Semitic incidents in Britain had reached a record high.
It found there had been 2,255 anti-Semitic incidents reported in 2021, a rise of 34 per cent from the previous year.
The report detailed the convictions of a number of people for anti-Semitic crimes, including one man who was jailed for setting up a neo-Nazi group which had encouraged “the eradication of Jewish people” and another who had posted anti-Semitic homemade videos on social media.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Racecard:
6.30pm: Mazrat Al Ruwayah (PA) | Group 2 | US$55,000 (Dirt) | 1,600 metres
7.05pm: Meydan Sprint (TB) | Group 2 | $250,000 (Turf) | 1,000m
7.40pm: Firebreak Stakes | Group 3 | $200,000 (D) | 1,600m
8.15pm: Meydan Trophy | Conditions (TB) | $100,000 (T) | 1,900m
8.50pm: Balanchine | Group 2 (TB) | $250,000 (T) | 1,800m
9.25pm: Handicap (TB) | $135,000 (D) | 1,200m
10pm: Handicap (TB) | $175,000 (T) | 2,410m.
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
INVESTMENT PLEDGES
Cartlow: $13.4m
Rabbitmart: $14m
Smileneo: $5.8m
Soum: $4m
imVentures: $100m
Plug and Play: $25m
THE 12 BREAKAWAY CLUBS
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
U19 World Cup in South Africa
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
UAE squad
Aryan Lakra (captain), Vriitya Aravind, Deshan Chethyia, Mohammed Farazuddin, Jonathan Figy, Osama Hassan, Karthik Meiyappan, Rishabh Mukherjee, Ali Naseer, Wasi Shah, Alishan Sharafu, Sanchit Sharma, Kai Smith, Akasha Tahir, Ansh Tandon
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Honeymoonish
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elie%20El%20Samaan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENour%20Al%20Ghandour%2C%20Mahmoud%20Boushahri%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
