The UAE will spend AED600 billion ($163.3 billion) over the next three decades in developing the country’s energy market, with a plan for clean energy to power 50 percent of the sector by 2050.
The first unified energy strategy for the UAE has been announced which aims to balance economic needs and environmental goals.
In a series of tweets on the official Dubai Media Office feed, it was revealed that the energy plan will combine nuclear and renewables with clean fossil energy with an investment of $600 billion by 2050.
The new strategy also aims to boost consumption capabilities by 40 per cent, as well as increasing the contribution of clean energy by 50 percent, resulting in savings of AED700 billion.
The equation targeted by the plan is 44 percent clean energy, 38 percent gas, 12 percent clean coal and 6 percent nuclear.
Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Prime Minister and Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said: “Our new energy plan balance between supply and demand, and takes into consideration our international commitments in term of environment. It also ensure comfortable economic environment for growth across the sectors.
“The plan is a joint effort of all the concerned energy-related authorities and all executive councils in the UAE, and under the supervision of the federal government represented by the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs and The Future.
“The new strategy takes into consideration an expected annual growth of 6 percent, and work on increasing the contribution of the clean energy in the energy mix from 25 percent to 50 percent by 2050, and also slashing carbon footprint during power generation by 70 percent over the next three decades,” he added.
“Ensuring the sustainability of energy resources is a guarantee of the sustainability of the growth of our country. The government has made an achievement by drafting the first unified energy strategy in the country based on supply and demand. He who does not think of energy is not thinking about the future.
“The Gulf countries are similar in their economic structure, and we hope that we will one day have a unified GCC energy strategy in order to ensure sustainable growth for our people and global influence for our economies,” he said.
Dubai already has a clean energy plan for the period to 2050 but this is the first UAE-wide strategy.
The Mohammed bin Rashid Solar Park, which was announced in January 2012 and is currently under construction, is a major part of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, which aims to make Dubai a global centre of clean energy and green economy.
Under the strategy guidelines, the emirate aims to provide seven percent of Dubai’s energy from clean energy sources by 2020, increasing this target to 25 percent by 2030 and 75 percent by 2050.
