The UAE, like many other countries in the Middle East, faces unique challenges related to climate change. According to the latest IPCC report, known as the AR6 Synthesis Report, released in 2023, the UAE faces several key climate threats. Rising temperatures and extreme heat events pose significant risks to human health and infrastructure. The region is also vulnerable to sea-level rising and flooding, which threatens the coastal ecosystems as well as the urban areas. Thankfully, the Emirate is actively pursuing climate technology solutions in a concerted effort to mitigate climate related challenges and make the most of opportunities afforded by the climate transition.
As part of the recent Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) Roundtable in 2023, the topic of establishing the UAE as a leading climate technology hub was discussed in detail. This took place on the sidelines of UAE Climate Tech, an event focused on accelerating climate tech adoption within the UAE and beyond and hosted by UAE’s Ministry of Industry & Advanced Technology (MoIAT). The talks focused on several key outcomes, including the promotion of disruptive innovations such as carbon capture, AI, robotics and digitalisation. Emphasis was also placed on developing hydrogen and renewable energy solutions, particularly for sectors such as oil and gas. In addition, the talks underscored the importance of collaboration between industry leaders and innovators in order to help the global drive towards net-zero emissions by 2050.
COP28, held in the UAE, saw a primary focus on the future role of fossil fuels with discussions centring on the issue of climate finance disparities, culminating in the establishment of the Loss and Damage Fund. This fund serves as a mechanism to compensate developing countries for the tangible losses inflicted by climate change on communities, nations, and ecosystems. H.E Dr. Sultan al-Jaber, the President of the COP28 climate conference, stated that the United Arab Emirates would commit $100 million to the fund. This fund will focus on bridging the climate finance gap and support innovations in renewable and clean energy technologies. Additionally, part of the UAE’s donation will go towards assisting vulnerable countries with climate adaptation and mitigation efforts.
While the progress in establishing the Loss and Damage Fund is great news, it’s even more important that UAE tackles present day climate risks by investing in technologies that can help mitigate climate change – its current and future impacts. Recent events such as the urban flooding seen in the region highlight these dangers. The UAE’s record-breaking rainfall, the highest in 75 years, underscores the urgent need for more resilient systems and investments focused on mitigation of physical climate risks. This extreme weather event highlights the necessity for improved drainage systems, robust flood management strategies and adaptive urban planning to mitigate future impacts to ensure the safety and functionality of critical infrastructure. With these dual risks of water scarcity and extreme rain, among other climate related risks, climate tech must be all encompassing in its approach to not only energy efficiency but climate resiliency. In fact, Abu Dhabi’s state-linked newspaper, WAM, described the recent deluge as a warning to countries in the wider Persian Gulf region to “climate-proof their futures.”
The UAE’s Vision 2021 sets ambitious goals to ensure that the nation becomes a global model and leader in sustainability under the “Green Economy for Sustainable Development” initiative. As part of this, the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) launched UAE CLIMATE TECH in 2020 to ‘Transform, decarbonize and Futureproof’ the UAE. It builds on the country’s legacy of climate leadership, as a major investor in climate action with its approach underpinned by ADNOC’s $15 billion allocation to low-carbon solutions, new energies and decarbonization technologies. This includes developing Masdar City with an aim for 100 gigawatts (GW) of renewables generation capacity and one million tonnes of Green Hydrogen production by 2030. To transform the region toward a more sustainable future, UAE is exploring various climate related technological solutions surrounding the following broad areas:
Renewable Energy: Renewable energy in the UAE is rapidly expanding, with a significant focus on diversifying its energy mix. The Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant is an example of this. Once all four units are fully operational, the plant is expected to provide up to 25% of the country’s electricity needs, reducing carbon emissions by 21 million tonnes annually. By 2030, the UAE aims to have 30% of its energy from clean sources and by 2050 the target is 44%. Masdar City is another ambitious example of urban development fully focused on harnessing renewable energy related technology.
Desalination and Water Management: The UAE has very limited natural groundwater and freshwater resources, with regulations notably restricting groundwater use. Water scarcity is therefore a super critical issue for UAE, and the country is very active in exploring desalination technologies to increase water efficiency and reduce related energy consumption. One notable project is the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority’s (DEWA) implementation of Sea Water Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) technology for desalination, which uses clean energy to enhance efficiency and water security. DEWA aims to increase the water desalination capacity to 730 million imperial gallons per day (MIGD) by 2030. The UAE is also developing three new desalination plants in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Umm Al Quwain.
Energy Efficiency: Mitigating climate change is only possible if all industries work toward greater energy efficiencies at every step of the value chain. For example, DEWA’s introduction of the ‘Smart Living’ program includes features such as the ‘My Sustainable Living Programme’ which provides consumers with detailed reports and comparisons of their water and electricity consumption. In addition, the IoT integration in municipal irrigation and street lighting is a significant step towards enhancing energy efficiency, increasing public awareness and reducing overall consumption in the UAE.
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS): CCS technologies will play a large role in curbing greenhouse gas emissions from industries like oil and gas production. UAE is committed to utilising CCS solutions to capture and store carbon dioxide emissions, to help mitigate climate impact. ADNOC is leading the initiative on this technology front and announced development of Habshan carbon capture project with the capacity to capture and permanently store 1.5 million metric tons of CO2 per annum.
Climate Adaptation: To deal with the impacts of climate change, such as rising temperatures and sea levels, UAE is investing heavily in infrastructure resilience, water conservation technologies and innovative sustainable agriculture solutions as part of the UAE’s Net Zero Long Term Strategy Report of 2023. Notably, the ministry of Climate Change and Environment have launched the Real Estate Climate Pledge which involves setting decarbonisation targets and adopting sustainable practices across the real estate and construction sectors.
Innovation and Research: To harness Climate technology, various initiatives across UAE’s emirates are helping create an environment where innovation and research thrive, fostering global technology partnerships. Initiatives include the Abu Dhabi Research and Development Authority (ADRDA) and institutions such as the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology. These efforts aim to develop new technologies and solutions tailored to the region’s climate challenges.
According to the MoCCaE, the UAE plans to reduce emissions from the industrial sector to seven million mtCO2e by 2050, from 103 mtCO2e in 2019. To achieve UAE’s 2050 net zero strategy, it will undertake more than 25 programs covering six sectors: power, industry, transport, buildings, waste and agriculture.
To tackle climate change UAE is committed to harnessing nature-based solutions and technologies. This includes planting 100 million mangroves by 2030, promoting direct air capture technology and implementing other nature-based solutions that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To plant the vast mangroves at speed, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) signed a contract with Distant Imagery, a UAE-based environmental technology company, to plant 2.5 million mangrove seedlings across Abu Dhabi utilising innovative drone planting technology adopted by UAE’s Environment Agency.
Abu Dhabi’s Sustainability Roundtable warned that a major challenge faced by public and private organisations is establishing trust and validation for new climate related technologies. This is because organisations encounter limitations in investing in high-risk ventures. This risk- focus, while necessary, can hinder attempts to utilise new technologies. Secondly, there is an absence of a centralised match-making tool, or process to effectively connect organisations with credible startups offering mitigated-risk solutions. Furthermore, there is a dire need for academic research into local resources for region-focused scalable technology intervention. Establishing partnerships between industry players, academia, and financial institutions is therefore a crucial catalyst for climate technology acceleration.
UAE has also recently partnered with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to accelerate climate resilience. The partnership specifically relates to enhancing food security in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, via agricultural innovations. This is an important example of how climate tech has no borders, and Abu Dhabi’s can effectively contribute through its largely untapped role in disseminating climate tech best practices around the world. In fact, AGS itself intends to catalyse the climate transition in a de-risked way for our clients, while harnessing the most promising and proven sustainability innovations.
With its renewed focus on harnessing technology for climate action, the UAE has significant opportunities to become a future hub for Climate Tech leadership in the region. To do this, it must leverage its unique position by showcasing key examples of successful policies and institutional investments towards climate tech. According to the ADSW Roundtable, the UAE can best harness climate tech by creating platforms for knowledge dissemination and capacity building. This should include a multistakeholder collaboration approach, to help UAE replicate its successes in other cities and countries.
As the IPCC’s most recent report highlights, the UAE and similar regions are severely vulnerable when it comes to climate change impacts. Areas in the tropics, including parts of Asia like the UAE, face increasing risks from extreme weather events, which exacerbate food and water insecurity. Nevertheless, the UAE has been making strides when it comes to fostering regional cooperation on mitigating climate change through its leadership in “knowledge dissemination and capacity building”. UAE has embraced climate action as an opportunity and an exciting, promising challenge.
