Jauad El Kharraz, executive director of the Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE), says that countries like Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Oman have recently taken big steps to promote gradual transition to renewable energy by setting targets and timelines, and reviewing policy, legislative frameworks, and financing mechanisms.

RCREEE is an intergovernmental organisation with diplomatic status that aims to enable and increase the adoption of renewable energy and energy efficiency practices across Arab countries. It is affiliated to the Energy Department of the Arab League and the Arab Ministerial Council for Electricity.

Under the slogan “Our sustainable choices make our future sustainable”, RCREEE will address renewable energy transition in the second edition of the Cairo Sustainable Energy Week (CSEW), scheduled to take place in Cairo between 1-3 October.

CSEW is an annual event which brings together decision-makers, ministers, and senior government officials from Arab states, regional and international financing institutions, representatives of private companies working in the energy sector, and energy experts to discuss the challenges facing the adoption of renewable energy. A trade exhibition will be held alongside the conference.

The first CSEW, held last year, included discussions on finance mechanisms and public-private partnerships that can catalyse change and foster action-oriented solutions towards sustainable energy transition. Meetings held on the peripherals of this year’s CSEW will include the fourth Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) Energy and Climate Business Forum.

Recent reports from the EU Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Mediterranean Experts on Climate and Environmental Change (MedECC) have underlined the urgent need for enhanced action and cooperation on energy initiatives given the threats posed by climate change to the stability, security, and prosperity of the Mediterranean region.

The Business Forum, organised jointly by UfM, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency and RCREEE, aims to complement the CSEW agenda with discussions on public-private partnerships and financing mechanisms that enhance action-oriented solutions towards a sustainable energy transition in the Mediterranean area. Last year it was held on the periphery of the second Conference of Parties of the countries bordering the Mediterranean on Climate Change (MedCOP) held in Tangiers, Morocco.

On the day before CSEW, notes El Kharraz, a meeting of the MENALINKS programme will be held in Cairo. MENALINKS, a project initiated by the German government, aims to support the integration of renewable energy to the grids of MENALINKS countries — Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, and Turkey — by leveraging sector coupling, smart grid and flexibility options.

El Kharraz says the investment environment for renewable energy has significantly improved. Egypt has updated its renewable energy strategy. The private sector has been given more room, greater reliance on auctions and competitive bids is leading to more competitive pricing, particularly for solar and wind energy, and legislative amendments are encouraging foreign investors to enter the market.

“Egypt set an initial target for increasing renewable energy sources in electricity production from 20 to 42 per cent by 2035. Now we are talking about the possibility of reaching that target by 2030,” he says.

He notes that Egypt already has one of the biggest solar plants in the world, the Benban Solar Park in Aswan, a major wind station in the Gulf of Suez and other projects in the pipeline. Many European companies take part in these projects, and recently Saudi and UAE companies have been encouraged to enter Egypt’s renewable energy market.

Eight of the 21 agreements to produce green hydrogen signed during COP27 in 2022 are currently in the implementation stage, and El Kharraz is optimistic more projects will be implemented in the next few years “given that there is a political will, the legislative framework is being overhauled,” and “Egypt’s location and proximity to the European market works in its favour.”

Germany and Italy are already looking at Egypt as a strategic partner from which they can import green hydrogen and green ammonia, added El Kharraz, before drawing attention to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s statement during her most recent visit to Egypt highlighting that the EU has invested €1 billion in Egypt’s clean energy potential.

The MENA-Europe Future Energy Dialogue (MEFED), another meeting that will work towards the transition to renewable energy, is scheduled for 8 September 2024 in Thessaloniki, Greece.

MEFED 2024 aims to deepen energy cooperation between the MENA region and Europe, with an agenda that focuses on developing cross-regional energy infrastructure.

The EU aims to import 40 gigawatts of green hydrogen from southern Mediterranean countries by 2050, says El Kharraz, and strengthening electric networks between Europe and the Middle East will facilitate the import of green hydrogen.

Morocco has earmarked one million hectares of land for green hydrogen projects, with the initial phase covering 300,000 hectares to entice investors. The country aims to produce 52 per cent of its domestic energy needs from renewable sources by 2030.

While El Kharraz says it is an ambitious target and delays in updating the legislative framework and investment in infrastructure, including the electric network, may present obstacles, the political will to push towards the target clearly exists.

Jordan also has promising solar energy potential, and in Tunisia 1.5 million people already use solar water heaters.

Gulf states also have ambitious renewable energy targets. They are implementing major green hydrogen projects and investing heavily in technology and research.

Saudi Arabia is building the world’s largest green hydrogen-based ammonia production plant. Its current strategy aims to produce 1.2 million tons of green hydrogen, catering to 10 per cent of global demand, by 2030.

Oman, where the authorities have signed a $6.7-billion deal to build the world’s largest green hydrogen plant in Duqm, is expected to become the largest green hydrogen exporter in the MENA region by 2030.

In Libya, El Karraz says, the situation is more complicated. Libya recently published a strategy for renewable energy, but implementation is being hampered by political conditions. And while there had been noticeable developments towards renewable energy, especially solar power, in Yemen, Gaza, Sudan, and Djibouti, once again political developments have hindered progress.

“We should ask European countries for help in research, innovation, and training as the first steps towards understanding the new technology and producing it domestically. That way, we will not remain dependent on foreign markets in the future,” says El Kharraz, adding that scientific research funding, which is less than one per cent of NDP in Arab states, needs to be reviewed and increased.

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* A version of this article appears in print in the 22 August, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly