The UAE is preparing to publish its national hydrogen strategy in April as it seeks to become a global "top 10" hydrogen producer by 2031, according to Dipak Sakaria, energy transition expert at the country'it s ministry of energy and infrastructure.
The strategy will build on a preliminary roadmap that was published at the UN's COP 26 climate summit in 2021 and will revolve around 10 key elements, Sakaria said today at the World Hydrogen Mena conference in Dubai. Among these are international collaboration, industrial growth, skills and education, green financing and infrastructure. The strategy will identify a location for a hydrogen valley in the UAE, the ministry's director of future energy Nawal Alhanaee said.
Sakaria sees quick progress in low-carbon hydrogen projects in the UAE, with seven of the 10 large projects under development having secured necessary financing and three being close to this step.
The UAE has in the past signalled openness to different production pathways. Last year, the ministry's under-secretary Sharif Al Olama said it could produce hydrogen in a range of ways including from natural gas with carbon capture and storage, through water electrolysis by drawing on ample solar-power generation capacity, and through utilising nuclear power. It expects to produce between 14mn-22mn t/yr of hydrogen by 2050, Al Olama said at the time.
The UAE has invested more than $43bn in clean energy over the past 15 years and plans to spend $163bn until 2050, according to Alhanaee. It has invested more than $50bn in 40 countries and is willing to put the same amount forward again in the next 10 years, she said.
As the UAE has its eyes on exports, it is collaborating internationally on standards and regulation, including with the EU, Alhanaee said. This is likely to be important for the UAE if it wishes to deliver supply compliant with EU standards.
But Sakaria also sees ample scope for hydrogen use within the UAE, especially as export challenges remain. Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates have sizeable steel and aluminium manufacturing sites where hydrogen will be crucial for decarbonising. There could also be scope for using hydrogen-derived products, such as e-methanol as a marine fuel for bunkering at the port of Fujairah, Sakaria said.
