Sharjah 24 - WAM: Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Special Envoy for Climate Change said the UAE is well positioned to provide low cost, low carbon energy as global demand returns and is expected to increase in line with economic growth.
"The UAE’s primary crude grade, Murban, is one of the least carbon-intensive in the world, with less than half the carbon intensity of the industry average. This creates a dual advantage for us – low cost and low carbon.
"So, in a world that needs more energy with fewer emissions, the UAE is stepping up to expand our low carbon crude capacity," said Dr. Al Jaber.
Speaking during a virtual session of the Columbia Global Energy Summit, Dr. Al Jaber said that increased demand for cost-efficient, lower-carbon energy positions the UAE at a competitive advantage and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is focusing on low carbon production.
In a conversation with David Sandalow, Inaugural Fellow, Centre on Global Energy Policy at Columbia SIPA, he explained that oil and gas will continue to play a major role alongside a diversifying energy mix and that diversifying the country’s energy mix is not only the responsible way forward, but can provide new economic opportunities.
Dr. Sultan went on to describe how the UAE is a partner of choice across the entire traditional and alternative energy landscape, including hydrogen, which shows great promise as a zero-carbon fuel that could be produced at scale as part of the existing hydrocarbon value chain, Dr. Al Jaber said. He added that the UAE is well-positioned to leverage its existing gas infrastructure to develop blue and green hydrogen.
During the session, Dr. Al Jaber touched on the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4Climate) announced by the UAE and the United States with the support of seven other countries last month and shared insights on why the UAE is taking the lead on the initiative which is aimed at increasing research and development (R&D) investment and accelerating innovation into sustainable agricultural practices.
Concluding the session, Dr. Al Jaber outlined his expectations for the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) taking place in Glasgow in November. He expressed cautious optimism and said he believes the world understands that progressive climate action is an opportunity for economic growth, particularly coming off the back of post-Covid recovery.
Organised by the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, the Global Energy Summit is gathering experts from around the world to focus on understanding trends shaping our current energy system, and what's ahead for energy policy, energy markets, geopolitics, technology, and efforts to reduce emissions and address climate change. Speakers at the event include Dr. Fatih Birol, Executive Director, International Energy Agency and Bernard Looney, CEO, BP.
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