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Saudi Arabia Accelerates Shift to Modern Transport for Carbon Emission Reduction

Saudi Arabia is driving a major shift in the transportation sector to address the rising challenges of climate change. (AFP)
Saudi Arabia is driving a major shift in the transportation sector to address the rising challenges of climate change. (AFP)
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Saudi Arabia Accelerates Shift to Modern Transport for Carbon Emission Reduction

Saudi Arabia is driving a major shift in the transportation sector to address the rising challenges of climate change. (AFP)
Saudi Arabia is driving a major shift in the transportation sector to address the rising challenges of climate change. (AFP)

Saudi Arabia is driving a major shift in the transportation sector to address the rising challenges of climate change.

The Kingdom’s plans in this area are crucial to the global effort to reduce carbon emissions by 4%, focusing on exploring modern transportation alternatives.

Experts in energy and logistics applaud Saudi Arabia for proactively aligning with global climate change trends.

The country has been a pioneer in reducing the environmental impact of traditional fuel-based transportation, leading international efforts in developing the hydrogen industry and the launch of the Green Saudi and Green Middle East eco-friendly initiatives.

Efforts to cut fuel consumption in transportation face significant challenges, and Saudi Arabia is emphasizing diverse solutions that benefit the global economy without harming fuel-producing nations.

According to research from the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center, sustained policies to improve efficiency could reduce the Kingdom’s annual transportation emissions growth from 7% to 3% by 2030.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Dr. Mohammed Suroor Al-Sabban, former Chief Advisor of the Saudi Ministry of Energy, stressed that while the shift to alternatives like electric vehicles is positive, it cannot completely replace traditional fuel or oil in transportation, especially in aviation and maritime sectors.

He highlighted the need for varied efforts that benefit both the global economy and the climate and avoiding a narrow position that damages fossil fuel and oil-producing economies.

Al-Sabban underlined Saudi Arabia’s leadership in climate change initiatives, actively participating in the development of renewable energy sources and carbon removal from oil.

The country continues to lead international efforts in hydrogen industry development and environmental projects, contributing to global climate change solutions.

He also noted that some Western concerns about climate change are exaggerated, aiming to minimize global oil consumption.

However, Al-Sabban emphasized that the consumption will persist for many decades, as fossil fuels still make up 80% of the world’s total energy use.

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ECB's Lagarde Renews Integration Call as Trade War Looms

FILE PHOTO: European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and Governor of the Bank of Finland Olli Rehn arrive at the non-monetary policy meeting of the ECB's Governing Council in Inari, Finnish Lapland, Finland February 22, 2023. Lehtikuva/Tarmo Lehtosalo via REUTERS//File Photo
FILE PHOTO: European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and Governor of the Bank of Finland Olli Rehn arrive at the non-monetary policy meeting of the ECB's Governing Council in Inari, Finnish Lapland, Finland February 22, 2023. Lehtikuva/Tarmo Lehtosalo via REUTERS//File Photo
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ECB's Lagarde Renews Integration Call as Trade War Looms

FILE PHOTO: European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and Governor of the Bank of Finland Olli Rehn arrive at the non-monetary policy meeting of the ECB's Governing Council in Inari, Finnish Lapland, Finland February 22, 2023. Lehtikuva/Tarmo Lehtosalo via REUTERS//File Photo
FILE PHOTO: European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and Governor of the Bank of Finland Olli Rehn arrive at the non-monetary policy meeting of the ECB's Governing Council in Inari, Finnish Lapland, Finland February 22, 2023. Lehtikuva/Tarmo Lehtosalo via REUTERS//File Photo

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde renewed her call for economic integration across Europe on Friday, arguing that intensifying global trade tensions and a growing technology gap with the United States create fresh urgency for action.
US President-elect Donald Trump has promised to impose tariffs on most if not all imports and said Europe would pay a heavy price for having run a large trade surplus with the US for decades.
"The geopolitical environment has also become less favorable, with growing threats to free trade from all corners of the world," Lagarde said in a speech, without directly referring to Trump.
"The urgency to integrate our capital markets has risen."
While Europe has made some progress, EU members tend to water down most proposals to protect vested national interests to the detriment of the bloc as a whole, Reuters quoted Lagarde as saying.
But this is taking hundreds of billions if not trillions of euros out of the economy as households are holding 11.5 trillion euros in cash and deposits, and much of this is not making its way to the firms that need the funding.
"If EU households were to align their deposit-to-financial assets ratio with that of US households, a stock of up to 8 trillion euros could be redirected into long-term, market-based investments – or a flow of around 350 billion euros annually," Lagarde said.
When the cash actually enters the capital market, it often stays within national borders or leaves for the US in hope of better returns, Lagarde added.
Europe therefore needs to reduce the cost of investing in capital markets and must make the regulatory regime easier for cash to flow to places where it is needed the most.
A solution might be to create an EU-wide regulatory regime on top of the 27 national rules and certain issuers could then opt into this framework.
"To bypass the cumbersome process of regulatory harmonization, we could envisage a 28th regime for issuers of securities," Lagarde said. "They would benefit from a unified corporate and securities law, facilitating cross-border placement, holding and settlement."
Still, that would not solve the problem that few innovative companies set up shop in Europe, partly due to the lack of funding. So Europe must make it easier for investment to flow into venture capital and for banks to fund startups, she said.