Saudi Arabia will begin working in March on determining the cost of affordable solar energy for the purposes of generating and producing electricity, revealed Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdul Aziz bin Salman.
Speaking at a webinar of the International Energy Forum and the European Union hosted in Riyadh, the minister stressed the need to collectively boost cooperation on swiftly finding global solutions for harmful carbon emissions that threaten future generations.
Prince Abdul Aziz mentioned that Saudi Arabia will continue to mount international efforts in the fields of energy and climate. It is worth noting that the kingdom was among the first to sign the Paris Agreement on climate change.
More so, Saudi Arabia’s share in global CO2 emissions does not exceed 1.4%.
The energy minister further added that the kingdom is seeking to produce 50% of its energy demand from renewable sources by 2030, giving it a lead among other advanced economies.
“Next month we will begin full work on determining the cost of affordable solar energy for an electricity production model,” he told the virtual meeting’s attendees, adding that Saudi Arabia’s considerable efforts for creating green energy solutions have been successful.
Hydrogen is regarded by many experts as the clean energy of the future. Green hydrogen is produced using solar energy, and is a major feature of the energy equation at the planned NEOM megacity. In another form, “blue ammonia” is a byproduct of the oil refining process that Saudi Aramco has already produced and exported to Japan.
The need to fight global emissions is key to the “circular carbon economy” championed by Saudi Arabia as a way to achieve climate change goals, and was endorsed by G20 leaders last year under the Saudi presidency.
Prince Abdul Aziz appealed for “flexibility” by other countries in the debate over how best to mitigate climate change.
“The goal is to be flexible and mindful of the participants and their priorities,” he said.
Some countries, especially in Europe, have said they would like to move away more quickly from hydrocarbon fuels. Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, believes this is the wrong approach.
To address climate change, Prince Abdul Aziz said, “you need to bring everybody on board and you need to be mindful of their priorities and you need to be mindful of how much (energy resources] they are endowed with.
“But I can guarantee you that we’re opening hands, hearts and minds to work with everybody and bring solutions to move forward and work with these ambitions, but with a difference — we are not bragging about it, not talking about it, we are executing these things and providing people with examples."
“Trust us, but more important, collaborate with us in universal solutions.”
Saudi Arabia is offering to transport “green” hydrogen by pipeline to Europe in the next stage of the Kingdom’s strategy to combat climate change.
“If Europe would like to buy more hydrogen, Saudi green hydrogen, we would be more than happy, and even, if the economics allow for it, even piping it all the way to somewhere in Europe,” said the minister.
