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Advanced Media Trading, the largest distributor of professional video, cinema, photo, and broadcast equipment and accessories in the MENA region, has made significant strides towards its commitments to sustainability and climate action. The UAE based retailer has recently received verification for its near-term science-based emissions reduction target by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The approval by SBTi establishes AMT as the only media retailer in the world to have achieved this milestone.

The SBTi is a climate action organization that enables companies and financial institutions worldwide to play their part in combating the climate crisis. AMT has committed to reducing scope 1 and scope 2 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by 42% by 2030 from a 2021 base year, and to measure its scope 3 emissions.

AMT has been electrifying their fleet since signing onto the UAE Alliance for Climate Action (UACA)’s Road 2.0 pilot during COP28. AMT joined UACA, an alliance of stakeholders in the UAE convened by Emirates Nature-WWF and endorsed by the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, in 2023 as their first SME.  In 2024, Advanced Media converted 20% of its fleet to electric. By 2030, the goal is to reach 100% electrification.

AMT and DHL Express have partnered to reduce carbon emissions using DHL’s GoGreen Plus service. This service allows AMT to cut emissions by 30% through Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), a renewable fuel sourced from sustainable materials, replacing traditional jet fuel to lower aviation carbon footprints and advance net-zero goals.

Lastly, AMT’s annual Solid Waste Landfilled’s GHG emissions have steadily decreased by 25% since 2021 through strategic partnerships with waste management companies offering plastic, paper and steel recycling and food composting. Regular awareness and a near-total ban of plastic bottles and plastic bags have also played a major role.

AMT produced and published a comprehensive GHG emissions inventory report attributed to their operations within the UAE from 2021 to 2024 utilizing UACA’s eMission platform to compute and calculate the data. The report is accessible on AMT’s website as well as AMT’s dashboard on the SME Commitment Hub and We Mean Business platform.

Additionally, AMT has also been awarded the Dubai Chamber of Commerce ESG Label for demonstrating a firm commitment and taking practical measures to ensure that sustainability and ESG practices are an integral part of the company’s operations.  AMT also has earned a Committed Badge in the EcoVadis assessment.

“We have always strived for excellence in every aspect of our business, from consultation to aftersales and service, and now climate action. We see ourselves as a value-added reseller. It is important for us to not only raise awareness of our social and moral duties within the community and beyond but also practice what we preach. These awards and recognitions are a testament to the example we’d like to set and the standard we are following,” noted Alaa Al Rantisi, co-founder and managing director.

“The AMT of Social Responsibility which was designed to be a guiding principle for all our efforts and activities directed towards sustainability and social responsibility is a call to action for all SMEs. No action is too late or too little when it comes to social and climate justice. We hope that our accomplishments in three short years can serve as inspiration,” explained Parnian Farnam, Head of CSR.

Learn more about Advanced Media Trading’s Corporate Social Responsibility at www.amt.tv/csr

Positive Zero, the Middle East’s leading decarbonization and energy transition provider, has revealed record growth over the past 12 months. Since aligning with the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, in December 2023, Positive Zero has doubled its earnings and nearly tripled its capital expenditure on projects, year-on-year. Since then, the company has almost doubled its total solar power generation capacity, with the signing of 43 new distributed solar projects across the GCC region in 2024.

In 2025, Positive Zero anticipates further growth in decentralized infrastructure across Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Oman. Businesses and industries across the region are exploring decarbonization and renewable energy solutions, to reduce their carbon footprints and operational costs across facilities and equipment.

“Market dynamics are changing and many businesses have identified sustainability targets that align with national government Net Zero agendas. The private sector has a key role to play in decarbonization through the implementation of renewables, energy efficiency and electrification. To support this, we are deploying capital to rapidly scale clean energy projects across the region and provide the necessary financing to ensure that decarbonization is both practical and affordable for businesses,” said David Auriau, Co-Founder and CEO at Positive Zero.

During the past year, Positive Zero has combined the region’s largest distributed solar power business SirajPower, energy efficiency leader Taka Solutions and clean electric mobility pioneer Hypr Energy, under one unified umbrella. This new integrated model, which it calls ‘Decarbonization-as-a-Service’, provides businesses with a suite of clean energy solutions such as solar powered rooftops and carports, hybrid systems, energy efficiency management, on-demand batteries, electric fleet management and charging infrastructure. Positive Zero also offers intelligent financing to provide businesses with subscription models that require no upfront investment. 

Positive Zero has also seen the growth of talent within its operations. The business has recently opened new offices in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Manama, Bahrain, hiring local talent to drive on-ground initiatives. Overall, its diverse regional team across UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain has grown over the last six months alone, bringing the total team to more than 150 people.

Mohammed Abdulghaffar Hussain, Co-Founder and Chairman of Positive Zero said, “Businesses like Amazon, Tesla, Netflix and Airbnb all started as challengers, disrupting long standing business models. Government and business leaders in the Middle East understand that we must change the way energy is generated and consumed, to be sustainable and economically competitive. Our business model clearly aligns with those goals and with robust financial backing, we are well positioned to take advantage in 2025 and beyond.”

Through its sustainable business model, Positive Zero is supporting the visions of the region, including the UAE’s Net Zero 2050 Strategy, Saudi Green Initiative, the Bahrain National Energy Strategy and Oman National Net Zero by 2050 plan.

Overall, across its distributed solar power portfolio, energy efficiency and energy storage projects, fleet electrification and clean charging infrastructure, in 2024 Positive Zero supported a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of more than 250,000 tons. That is an equivalent amount to the carbon absorbed by 4 million trees over a decade.

To find out more about Positive Zero, visit positivezero.com. 

 The GCC Board Directors Institute (GCC BDI) is pleased to announce its strategic partnership with the Oman Investment Authority (OIA), marking a crucial step toward enhancing governance standards across the Gulf region. This collaboration underscores a unified commitment to excellence in governance and leadership, risk management and regulatory compliance, as well as board effectiveness.

As a Strategic Partner of the GCC Board Directors Institute (GCC BDI), the Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has appointed His Highness Sayyid Juland Jaifar Al Said, Chief of the Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) Directorate, to represent OIA at GCC BDI’s Board of Governors meetings. In this capacity, His Highness will play an active role in guiding GCC BDI’s strategic direction and mission, aimed at strengthening board member competencies, fostering a robust network of influential board members, and promoting the dissemination of best practices in corporate governance across the region.

Muhammad Al Shoorgi, Chairman of GCC BDI, added: “Oman Investment Authority’s commitment to this partnership demonstrates a shared vision for driving governance standards. Together, we will foster a culture of excellence that not only enhances our respective organisations but also contributes significantly to the economic development of the region.”

His Highness Sayyid Juland Jaifar Al Said, Chief of the Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) Directorate at OIA, expressed his enthusiasm for this collaboration: “Joining GCC BDI as a strategic partner aligns seamlessly with our mission at OIA to further enhance corporate governance, foster leadership development, and ensure our entities are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to navigate the evolving business landscape. This collaboration presents a valuable opportunity to leverage our collective expertise in ultimately building a robust governance framework in the region.  .”

As part of this partnership, GCC BDI recently delivered the tailored ‘OIA Board Development Certification’ to OIA, aiming to equip board members with the essential skills and knowledge required for excellence in governance. The programme engaged 56 participants in both practical and theoretical learning experiences, shaping forward-thinking leaders pivotal to reinforcing the national economic framework.

Supported by a prestigious consortium of regional corporations and professional services firms, including First Abu Dhabi Bank, National Bank of Bahrain, SABIC, Saudi Aramco, Allen & Overy, Heidrick & Struggles, McKinsey & Company, and PwC, the GCC BDI is at the forefront of enhancing governance standards in the Gulf region.

GCC BDI, founded in 2007, has emerged as the leading organisation for board directors in the Gulf region, delivering more than 600 programmes and forums to top-tier companies and boasting a network of over 4,200 members. Its commitment to enhancing corporate governance practices remains unwavering, backed by support from regional regulatory authorities.

The much-awaited Omnibus legislation simplyfying the CSRD, the CSDD and the EU Taxonomy was finally announced yesterday by the European Commission. As expected through the leaks over the weekend, there has been a shift as regards excessive regulatory burdens.

In effect, the Omnibus package provides the following:

• A proposal for a Directive amending the CSRD and the CSDDD;
• A proposal which postpones the application of all reporting requirements in the CSRD for companies that are due to report in 2026 and 2027 (so-called wave 2 and 3 companies) and which postpones the transposition deadline and the first wave of application of the CSDDD by one year to 2028.
• A draft Delegated act amending the Taxonomy Disclosures and the Taxonomy Climate and Environmental Delegated Acts  subject to public consultation.
• A proposal for a Regulation amending the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism Regulation
• A proposal for a Regulation amending the InvestEu Regulation

How companies in the EU will benefit

The Sustainability Omnibus package is expected to deliver €6.3 billion in annual savings by cutting administrative burdens. Key benefits include:

• Reduced reporting scope: CSRD obligations now apply only to large companies with over 1,000 employees and either €50 million turnover or €25 million in assets, cutting compliance costs for SMEs.
• Protection for SMEs: Introduction of voluntary sustainability reporting standards for SMEs, shielding them from excessive data requests by larger companies.
• Simplified Due Diligence: Reduced reporting frequency, harmonization across EU member states, and limited information requests for SMEs in large company supply chains.
• Easier Green Investment: The InvestEU Regulation changes are expected to mobilize €50 billion in additional public and private investments.
• Less Bureaucracy in CBAM: A 50-ton threshold will exempt 90% of small importers, while maintaining oversight on 99% of emissions.
• Revised Taxonomy Reporting:

• Reduction of data points by 70%.
• Introduction of materiality thresholds for reporting on eligible activities.
• Streamlining of ‘Do No Significant Harm’ (DNSH) criteria to ease compliance.

How to navigate the changes

Despite the developments, the question remains for companies, small and bigger ones: how to navigate the latest changes. For a start, this process could be lengthy until it becomes a final piece of legislation. This political trajectory has to go through the European Parliament first – and many provisions might change. Our advice at Verimpact is to stay the course with your CSRD and ESG implementation – despite all changes, you need to build sustainability data systems and enhance your ESG integration. The recent developments by no means equal abolishment of sustainability nor do they mean that investors, shareholders, banks and regulators will not still be asking for disclosures and annual reports. Invest in people and processes for long-term performance. If you need more specialized guidance, please reach out to our team