UAE revising clean coal percentage in 2050 energy mix

The UAE is revising the percentage of clean coal in its 2050 energy mix, an official from the energy and infrastructure ministry said Aug. 24, as OPEC's third-biggest producer forges ahead with plans to reduce its emissions.

In 2017, the UAE outlined its 2050 energy mix, which calls for 44% of power to come from renewables, 38% from gas, 12% from clean coal and 6% from nuclear.

The strategy also calls for reducing the carbon footprint of power generation by 70%. Currently, gas is the main feedstock for generation in the UAE.

"Regarding the clean coal, we are revising the percentage as well with the Dubai government," Nawal Alhanaee, acting director of future energy department at the ministry told the Green Hydrogen Middle East 2021 virtual conference organized by Global Transmission.

ACWA Power and Harbin Electric consortium are constructing the 2.4 GW Hassyan clean coal power station in Dubai, based on the Independent Power Producer procurement model, according to state-owned Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, with a 2023 target to be fully operational by 2023. DEWA and ACWA Power were not available for comment on the project's progress.

First in the Gulf

The Hassyan project will be the first power plant in the Gulf region using coal.

The UAE has pledged to lower its GHG emissions by 23.5% by 2030 in its second Nationally Determined Contribution, or NDC, that was submitted in December to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Overall, the UAE's per capita carbon footprint is more than four times the global average, with 20 mt of CO2 per capita compared with the global average of 4.4 mt of CO2 in 2018, according to data from the International Energy Agency. The main source of CO2 emissions is gas, according to the IEA.