Chairman of the Dubai Supreme Council Mr HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, of Energy and Chairman of the Expo 2020 Dubai Higher Committee, recently inaugurated a Green Hydrogen project at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai.

The project, implemented in collaboration with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Expo 2020 Dubai, and Siemens Energy, is the 1st solar driven green hydrogen-producing facility in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

“Through this pilot project, DEWA targets to demonstrate the production of green hydrogen from solar power, its storage, and re-electrification. This is a system that allows for buffering renewable energy production, both for fast response applications, as well as for long-term storage. The plant has been built to accommodate future applications and test platforms for the different uses of hydrogen, including potential mobility and industrial uses,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA.

HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer further added that the DEWA has already explored and developed a pilot project for green mobility using hydrogen that can be done in the near future, in addition to a number of studies, business strategies and a potential roadmap for hydrogen usage.

HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer said that year 2021 has witnessed important developments in the hydrogen sector. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum recently approved a UAE system for hydrogen fuel powered vehicles, which targets to develop the Green Hydrogen economy in the UAE, open local markets to hydrogen powered vehicles and boost an increase in environment friendly vehicles. The system is the essential for encouraging the use and licensing of vehicles, facilities and equipment related to hydrogen fuel and will contribute to achieving sustainable growth that balances the environmental, economic and social aspects.

This project to produce hydrogen using solar power also supports the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, to provide 75% of Dubai’s total power capacity from clean energy sources by year 2050 as well as the Dubai Green Mobility 2030 initiative, which targets to stimulate the use of sustainable transport.

“This landmark Green Hydrogen Project highlights the importance of partnership in driving ahead innovative new clean energy solutions and tackling the existential threat from global climate change. As the 1st industrial scale facility to produce green hydrogen in the Middle East and North Africa, it is an important milestone of the energy transformation. We look forward to working together to decarbonize industries that are hard to abate with renewable energy alone,” said Dr. Christian Bruch, President and CEO of Siemens Energy.