Energy
From The Report: Abu Dhabi 2023
View in Online Reader

Abu Dhabi’s ongoing transition from a fossil fuel-dependent economy to one driven by clean energy marks a significant shift. Hosting the Arab world’s first nuclear power plant and the largest single-site solar power plant, the emirate plays a pivotal role in this transition.
While hydrocarbons remain integral to the broader UAE’s economy, global energy shifts and geopolitical tensions have increased the importance of natural gas. Despite a potential economic slowdown in 2023-24, the UAE’s hosting of the COP28 UN Conference on Climate Change opens new doors for the energy sector, fostering strategic partnerships and investment.

Unconventional gas and blue and green hydrogen are key growth avenues, driving collaboration in production, storage, transport and related technologies for cleaner energy alternatives.

This chapter includes an interview with Awaidha Murshed Al Marar, Chairman, Department of Energy.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Climate for cooperation: COP28 will open new doors for energy companies and increase the number of strategic partnerships in the sector
OBG
plus

Despite Abu Dhabi’s history and reputation as a major oil exporter, the emirate is integral to the UAE’s ongoing transformation from an economy dependent on fossil fuels to one fuelled by clean energy. This clean-energy transition has already seen Abu Dhabi host the Arab world’s first nuclear power plant, as well as the largest single-site solar power plant in the world at the time when it was built. With the COP28 UN Conference on Climate Change taking place in the UAE in November and December…

Interview

Road to net zero: Awaidha Murshed Al Marar, Chairman, Department of Energy (DoE), on producing green energy and reducing carbon emissions
OBG
plus

Interview:Awaidha Murshed Al Marar How can Abu Dhabi’s electricity segment adapt to the UAE’s decarbonisation obligations? AWAIDHA MURSHED AL MARAR: In October 2021 the UAE became the first country in the MENA region to announce a national net-zero initiative, with the target year being 2050. Abu Dhabi, which is the largest emirate and accounts for 60% of the UAE’s energy consumption, will play a leading role in the country’s energy transition. Policies and regulations are fundamental…

Analysis

Ambitious plans: Success in the hydrogen market is tied to cost and the emirate’s ability to sustain sources of natural gas feedstock
OBG
plus

Hydrogen has a key role to play in helping the world to meet its net-zero targets. Its primary uses are for power generation, energy storage and transportation, including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). It is also seen as a means to decarbonise the world’s heavily polluting industries such as steel, aluminium and cement. The National Hydrogen Strategy seeks to produce 1.4m tonnes per annum (tpa) by 2031, consisting of 1m tpa of green hydrogen – produced via renewables – and 400,000 tpa of…

Analysis

Green goals: Emerging markets are navigating the rising cost of solar power
OBG
plus

With high energy prices and supply chain disruptions creating shortages of key renewable energy components and materials, emerging markets are reassessing how to build out utility-scale solar power to accelerate their energy transitions. After more than a decade of decline, the cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels has risen around the world, due primarily to the increasing cost of solar-grade polysilicon in China. A key component in PV panels, polysilicon spot market prices rose from less than…