Bureau Veritas’ white paper, entitled “Pioneering a Low Carbon Future – What is next for the Middle East and North Africa's Energy Transition” is now available for download. It outlines that how energy transition takes shape, hydrogen's real dawn needs guidance and how to strategically manage carbon.
Countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) – many of them leaders in fossil fuel markets for up to half a century - are increasingly focused on diversifying their energy basket with ‘‘greener’’ options. This push is aimed at ticking two non-negotiable boxes, which currently clash: simultaneously meet rising energy demand and dramatically reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2050. The Paris Agreement, the world’s biggest climate-related deal signed in the French capital in 2015, set out a goal to limiting global warming to well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5°C 2050. Reaching this target – and thus mitigating the worst impacts of climate change in MENA and beyond – is an enormous task that will require most nations to target net zero CO2 emissions by mid-century.
Much work is need to unlock one of the energy market’s greatest treasure troves: clean hydrogen. While clean hydrogen (green and blue) can undoubtedly be pivotal in enabling the MENA to hit both energy demand and climate targets, delegates highlighted that there is still a long way to go. Today’s hydrogen market is dominated by productions via fossil fuels (gray hydrogen), which does not support decarbonization. But aspirations to turn the tide and curate a globally competitive and environmentally friendly hydrogen ecosystem in the early 2030s are soaring, with Saudi Arabia and the UAE leading the MENA’s charge.
How we count, track, verify, and report CO2 emissions are questions that need answering. Being able to use a financial metric in association with reducing CO2 emissions can be a giant leap towards greater transparency and in turn, market confidence, delegates shared. Valuable parameters include project assessments, regulatory compliance, and risk management. Reconsidering financial models to include more incentives will also help drive progress.