MENA Europe Future Energy Dialogue calls for more investment in renewable energy

DEAD SEA — More investment and less consumption is critical for the energy sector amid the Russia-Ukraine war and its impact on energy prices, according to Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure of the UAE.

The minister’s remarks were made during a ministerial panel at the MENA Europe Future Energy Dialogue on Wednesday at the King Husssein Bin Talal Convention Centre at the Dead Sea.

Mazrouei emphasised the need for more investments in the energy sector to deal with the consequences of the Russia-Ukraine war.

According to the minister, the energy price hikes started before the war due to the lack of investments for years, but the war has only worsened the price hikes further as “the world is connected when it comes to energy”, he said.

“The conformity of the OPEC+ group until last month was more than 200 per cent, which means that compared to what we are supposed to produce, we are lagging by 2,600 hundred million,” Mazrouei said.

He indicated that the situation is “not encouraging when it comes to quantities that we can bring”.

Mazrouei called on countries to invest “more and quickly”. “The UAE will invest to increase our capacity from 4.2 million barrels to 5 million barrels by 2030. Europe and MENA [countries] should invest more in interconnecting countries together,” he added.

The minister mentioned that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have “enormous electricity amounts”, which are not used during the winter, as well as enormous opportunities to produce and transfer renewable energy.

The rising energy demand is “troublesome, especially in some MENA countries, as we are consuming energy way more than Europe”, the minister said.

“Efficiency improvement is needed to cut and reduce the increasing consumption. We are currently working on consumption management with partners to hopefully reduce consumption per capita of electricity and water,” he added.

Regarding hydrogen, the UAE has created a roadmap and shared it with other countries, according to Mazrouei.

“Green hydrogen is viable. We should work on how to create a market for companies to accelerate growth,” the minister said.

The UAE is working with more than 30 countries deploying renewable energy projects and aiming to expand, according to the minister.

Mazrouei highlighted that Africa is currently the top priority, as it has greater energy poverty than Europe.

Europe and Africa need to connect from a renewable point of view, the minister mentioned.

He also noted that tariff reforms are needed to attract investors. 

“Charging the real cost of energy will encourage wise consumption of energy,” Mazrouei added.

Tarek El Molla, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, said that the energy price hikes have impacted inflation, especially in countries with energy shortages.

The minister highlighted the importance of energy security, energy supplies and the supply chain amid the crises the world is facing.

“We need to capitalise on infrastructures and available resources in order to complement and help each other amid the rocketing energy prices,” Molla said.

He emphasised the need to come up with integrated solutions to overcome the challenges all countries are facing.

The minister noted that financing is very important and energy reforms are “critical” for the energy sector.

Jozef Sikela, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, noted that the current energy crisis is the “most severe energy crisis since World War II”.

“Each country has a different position in renewable energy development. The war is motivating European countries to double efforts to transport our energy system and dependence on Russian fossil fuels,” Sikela said.

He said that the MENA region deserves more investment in renewable resources.

Jordan is above the average in the region in producing solar energy, the minister mentioned.

“Due to the geographical proximity, Europe and MENA are essential partners for delivering sustainable and affordable energy,” Sikela added.

Rola Dashti, UN-ESCWA Executive Secretary, said that financing is a big issue for the MENA region, as fiscal space has become more limited, especially since the war has pushed three million people in the region into poverty so far.

“Energy is human security, water and food security as well. Financing is key in addressing climate change,” she said.

Energy transition differs depending on the economies of each country, she added.

Regarding the production-consumption issue, governments need to reshape and revisit as it is extremely important to achieve sustainable production, according to Dashti.

Collaboration, cooperation and communication in energy transition are needed between Europe and the MENA region to strengthen relations and to understand the path of energy transition, Dashti said.