UAE, Germany Boost Hydrogen Collaboration

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) signed a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) and joint study agreements (JSA) with counterparts in Germany to boost and deepen collaboration in clean hydrogen.

The agreements were announced during the visit of the German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Robert Habeck, to the UAE.

They build upon the longstanding Emirati-German Energy Partnership and the Ministerial Emirati-German Hydrogen Task Force that was inaugurated in November 2021.

UAE's Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director Sultan al-Jaber said the agreements would help enable and accelerate the global energy transition.

ADNOC has ambitious growth plans for clean hydrogen, a critical tool in efforts to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors, which we are actively delivering to meet demand in Asia and, through partnerships, Europe.

"We remain committed to working with like-minded partners across the public and private sectors to implement tangible projects that will supply the world's energy needs while reducing carbon emissions and the carbon intensity of the energy that supports our everyday lives," asserted Jaber.

ADNOC seeks to enter European markets through Germany. It is expected to accelerate further the delivery of UAE's Hydrogen Leadership Roadmap, which has identified Germany as a critical export market to provide up to 25 percent of the country's imported clean hydrogen.

As part of its ambitious decarbonization drive, the German government's National Hydrogen Strategy expects clean hydrogen demand of up to 3 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) by 2030, of which around 60 percent is expected to be imported. Notably, demand may grow to over 11 Mtpa by 2050.

Habeck underlined the importance of the Emirati-German cooperation for advancing on climate action, saying: "The accelerated scale-up of hydrogen supply chains is key for our transition to sustainable energy and for achieving the decarbonization goals in line with our commitments under the Paris Agreement. Today's agreements signal a decisive milestone towards meeting our climate action ambitions."

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the German Economy Ministry told Reuters that Habeck did not speak with ADNOC about increasing oil production,

"We haven't talked about oil except OPEC. In this respect, the appeal that the production volume is increased in such a way that the people of the world can pay for this oil as long as we need it," Habeck told journalists after a meeting with the company.

During the minister's visit, cooperation agreements and low-carbon demonstration cargos were signed, including Individual contracts with German companies Aurubis, RWE, GETEC, and STEAG to explore opportunities for collaboration in low-carbon and renewable hydrogen derivatives, including the execution of the first low-carbon (blue) ammonia demonstration cargos, produced by Fertiglobe, from the UAE to Germany in 2022 for use in a variety of applications.

Fertiglobe is a critical strategic partner for ADNOC in ammonia, and ADNOC will provide low-carbon ammonia to its partners in Germany that Fertiglobe produces at its Fertil plant in the Ruwais Industrial Complex in Abu Dhabi.

The sales represent a further milestone in the planned scale-up of blue ammonia production capabilities in Abu Dhabi.

ADNOC and its partners invest in a new world-scale 1 million metric tonnes per annum blue ammonia project at TA'ZIZ in Ruwais, subject to regulatory approvals.

ADNOC is also exploring with its partners various opportunities in green hydrogen.

Memorandum of Understanding between ADNOC, HHLA, and AD Ports Group: ADNOC entered into an MoU with HHLA, a Hamburg-based logistics and transportation company specializing in port throughput and container and transport logistics, and AD Ports Group to work on realizing Hamburg's ambition to become a hydrogen import hub in Germany.

Under the agreement, the parties will explore opportunities to increase the capabilities of the technology currently used to transport hydrogen using organic liquids to help meet the growing global demand for hydrogen transportation.

Egypt expects to harvest 10 million tonnes of wheat this year, up from 9 million in 2023, driven by improved crop yields and ambitious land reclamation efforts, Agriculture Minister Alaa Farouk told Reuters late on Wednesday.

He said 3.1175 million feddans (about 1.30 million hectares) have been cultivated this season — slightly lower than the 3.5 million feddans announced earlier by the planning ministry and 3.2 million feddans in 2024 (1.34 million hectares), suggesting a possible decline in total wheat area.

Farmers have told Reuters that wheat has become less profitable compared to crops like beet, whose area increased from 500,000 feddans (210,000 hectares) to 700,000 feddans (294,000 hectares) this year.

The government plans to buy 4-5 million tonnes of local wheat and import about 6 million tonnes to provide heavily subsidised bread for over 69 million Egyptians.

Farouk said newer high-yield wheat strains developed by the Agricultural Research Center have raised productivity by 7-8.5%.

"This is vertical expansion, and horizontal expansion is coming," he said.

That horizontal expansion is led by the Mostakbal Misr for Sustainable Development, which plans to reclaim 4 million feddans across the country.

Farouk said some of that land is ready for production and the rest will follow in the next two years, offering major opportunities for agricultural investment.

Mostakbal Misr, recently tasked with wheat imports, is also developing infrastructure and growing crops tailored to local consumption, exports and agri-processing, Farouk said..

Farouk added the government is studying a potential rise in local fertilizer prices. Urea and nitrate fertilizers cost around 9,500 Egyptian pounds ($185) per tonne to produce but are sold at a subsidized 4,500 ($87.63). Export prices reach up to 20,000 pounds ($389.48), Farouk said.

UAE, Germany Boost Hydrogen Collaboration