Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Neutral Fuels for future collaboration on the supply of its net zero biofuel for the Kingdom’s regenerative tourism project on the Red Sea coast.
The ACWA Power-led consortium was awarded the Red Sea Development Company’s highest value contract to design, build, operate and transfer the Red Sea Project’s sustainable utilities infrastructure in November 2020.
Once complete, the destination will become the world’s first project to be entirely powered by a range of renewable and sustainable energy sources, including biofuel, the ideal alternative energy source.
According to the agreement, Neutral Fuels biofuel is set to fuel the site’s entire transportation network.
“This was a hugely significant moment in the climate change issue,” said CEO of Neutral Fuels Karl Feilder.
“The scale of the project is impressive, but the real news is the massive scale of the Kingdom’s commitment to use renewable energy.”
Saudi Arabia is not only minimizing harm but also actively reducing its dependence on fossil fuel and enhancing the environment as it contributes to sustaining and regenerating it for years to come, he explained.
Feilder further pointed out that the given the Red Sea Project’s commitment, other companies “have no excuse for continuing to contribute to climate change.”
“Net zero biofuel is a very easy and clean plug-in replacement for the fossil fuels that are causing so much trouble to the environment. Any transportation fleet can make the switch overnight.”
He expressed hope that the Red Sea Project proves to be an inspiration for other companies to follow Saudi Arabia’s steps.
President & CEO of ACWA Power Paddy Padmanathan said as the world seeks to satisfy the rising demand for affordable power and water, ACWA Power remains committed to being at the forefront of the energy transition and providing transformative solutions, including the early adoption of emerging energy solutions like biofuels, to deliver power responsibly.
“We are delighted to be collaborating with Neutral Fuels, which is enabling us to accelerate our commitment to support the Kingdom’s ambitions to deliver a tourist destination that limits the environmental impact through the provision of zero-carbon emitting utility services.”
The project is expected to prevent an estimated 500,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year by using renewable energy and has already surpassed significant construction milestones.
Work is underway to welcome its first guests by the end of 2022, when the international airport and first hotels are due to open.
Neutral Fuels has begun setting up a biorefinery in Saudi Arabia to serve the project. The site will very quickly begin to resemble a city, dovetailing with the Neutral Fuels city-scale local business model, in which biofuel is made from local used vegetable cooking oil in a local facility for use by local customers.
