Energy
The Gulf States are major energy producers and exporters in the world. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman are constantly looking for new technologies for cleaner and more efficient energy production. These countries are also increasingly investing in renewable energy projects, including solar energy and hydrogen.
Challenges and Opportunities
The countries in the Gulf region are still heavily dependent on oil and gas revenues. Fossil fuels still provide about 90% of the Gulf region's energy needs. However, with the global energy transition and the desire to diversify their economies, the UAE and Oman are committed to a greater share of renewable energy in their multi-year strategies.
The demand for energy in the Gulf countries has increased significantly over the past decade due to a rising population and further industrialization. In the hot summers it is a challenge to meet the electricity demand, especially because of the large consumption of the necessary cooling systems.
The conditions and trends in the region offer opportunities in the field of renewable energy sources and energy transition in the Gulf region. At the end of 2018, the region had 867 MW of renewable energy capacity, of which 68% in the UAE. Although the current capacity is far from reaching the level planned by the Gulf countries, this represents a fourfold increase compared to 2014. With about 7 GW of projects in the pipeline, the transition is expected to accelerate in the near future.
Photovoltaic solar power (PV) is the most dominant technology with a share of about 75% of the planned projects, followed by concentrated solar power (CSP) and wind (mainly in Oman and Saudi Arabia). There is also a growing interest in hydrogen. National energy companies, governments, ports and knowledge institutions are developing new strategies and pilot projects for the production, storage and transport of hydrogen. These trends form the rationale for system integration and offer opportunities in the field of integration of the different forms of energy, demand management, energy storage systems and energy efficiency.
Netherlands Energy Technology Platform (NETP)
The NETP is an initiative of RBD Gulf and CG Rio de Janeiro. It is, in essence, a web-based digital brochure highlighting NL technologies in the area of Energy Transition. The NETP has been ‘live’ since October 2020 and as of 1/1/2021 it lists 125 technologies for 18 different countries. Seven energy sector organizations from The Netherlands have signed up as partners (FME, IRO, NWEA, EWA, NWBA, TKI Nieuw Gas, Buccaneer Delft). RVO is in charge of handling further development issues regarding the NETP including promotional activities focusing on getting more NL suppliers listed on the platform. The link to the NETP web-page you will find here: https://netp.technologycatalogue.com. Recently a promotional video was released on YouTube which explains the essence of the NETP to potential buyers and suppliers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYYtaabixbY.
Program
For the detailed program, please check the Agenda on this website. If you click on a session, a detailed program of that session will popup.
Please note that sessions might be recorded. In that case, review links will be shared on the tab Recordings.
