The 18th World Future Energy Summit, part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and hosted by Masdar, opened on January 13 at the ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi; and saw a number of key discussions around investment, clean energy adoption and cross-border collaborations take shape, with announcements worth billions of US dollars set to take place across the three-day event.
Opening the Summit, Ditte Jørgensen, Director General of Directorate-General for Energy (DG ENER) at the European Commission, delivered a keynote speech highlighting Europe’s commitment to hydrogen as a critical component in its energy transition. Emphasising the EU’s role in decarbonisation, she said the legal framework established to support global and low-carbon hydrogen production means there are significant opportunities within the GCC.
The Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for Energy, the EU funding programme to implement the Trans-European Networks for Energy policy, will increase fivefold to eventually reach €30 billion, she said. As negotiations with Gulf Cooperative Council countries proceed, Jørgensen called the opportunity to collaborate “essential for both sides”.
“A stable and ambitious trade and investment framework between the European Union and countries in the GCC will unlock further private investment, including in energy-critical raw materials, which are key to building the supply chains of the future, green technologies; and help bring innovation, affordability, competitiveness, and security,” Jørgensen added.
UAE is EU’s leading investment partner, with mutual investments exceeding €320 billion.
Organised in partnership with the EU-GCC Cooperation on Green Transition Project, Mohammad Abdelqader El-Ramahi, Chief Hydrogen Officer at Abu Dhabi’s Masdar, also took to the stage, telling delegates he believes mutual investments between the UAE and EU could, in time, reach trillions given international banks have projected global investment in green hydrogen alone to exceed US$11 trillion by the year 2040.
“We are absolutely thrilled with the Summit’s opening day across all our major metrics,” said Gareth Rapley, Portfolio Director, Energy and Marine at RX Global. “We’ve seen fantastic footfall across nine show halls, packed conference sessions tackling some of the industry’s most pressing challenges, and high-levels of industry-wide collaborations - in the form of exciting investment announcements and fledgling collaborations – being finalised and explored by like-minded businesses from every corner of the world. The World Future Energy Summit continues to connect the international renewable energy ecosystem in Abu Dhabi, while also propelling the emirate’s standing as a respected global connector and enabler.”
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