GCC’s green projects face funds shortage

BAHRAIN and other Gulf nations should invest oil revenues in building low-carbon economies and climate-resilient societies.

However, like its neighbours it faces a huge task to fund renewable energy projects under the present economic situation.

This has been revealed in a new white paper released by the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.

It provides a compact analysis of the climate change policies of six Gulf countries since the start of the year.

Key points stating the benefits of the NEEAP

The benefits and impact of the NREAP

Warns

The paper entitled Gulf States’ Climate Change Policies Amid a Global Pandemic, sheds light on the impact of Covid-19 on climate change agenda of Bahrain and its neighbours.

The report warns that Bahrain along with Kuwait, Qatar and Oman will have a tough task funding future renewable energy projects due to low oil and gas revenues.

In the UAE and Saudi Arabia, renewable energy is driven by a strategic decision to reduce reliance on natural gas in power generation.

“A similar policy would make sense for Kuwait as well, given the high share of oil in its power sector energy mix and the consequently higher opportunity cost of burning fossil fuels at home instead of exporting them.

“However, pre-2020 plans and current developments indicate that Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman are not likely to significantly speed up their renewable energy plans in the near term – the latter two owing to limited funds given their lower oil and gas revenue.”

The document states that Bahrain plans to reduce power consumption by six per cent by 2025 and further increase renewable energy target by 5pc during the same period.

“The Gulf Arab states have always had a challenging relationship with climate change,” according to the research.

“The growing pressure to decarbonise the global energy system is a challenge for, and a further reason to decrease, hydrocarbon reliance.”

The document authored by social scientist Mark Luomi states that Bahrain received $2.3 million from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for investment in its water sustainability projects.

Requested

“Work on a national climate change strategy reportedly started in Bahrain in 2020, but there have been no reports of similar plans in Qatar, Kuwait, or Saudi Arabia,” the research said.

The GDN reported in 2018 that Bahrain’s Supreme Council for Environment requested $9.8m to support a five-year project to shore up its national water resources.

In its proposal to the Global Climate Fund (GCF), Bahrain’s environment watchdog described the country as being “severely threatened by climate change”.

Two threats it identified in particular were rising temperatures and higher sea levels, saying “approximately one-tenth of Bahrain’s land area would be affected by a 0.3 metre increase in sea level”.

Meanwhile, the think tank warned that Bahrain faced challenges in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 7) related to affordable and clean energy and SDG 13 related to climate action.

“In financial terms, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE are overall better placed given their higher reserves-to-production ratios and breakeven oil prices than Bahrain and Oman,” the document said.

Target

“Significant acceleration in this regard is needed in particular in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar.

“Even in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, mitigation-relevant policies should also target other sectors beyond power generation.”

The impact of Covid-19 on Gulf emissions has also been highlighted in the report.

Bahrain set up the Sustainable Energy Authority in 2014 that developed two key policy documents: The National Energy Efficiency Action Plan and the National Renewable Energy Action Plan.

These plans, endorsed by the Cabinet, are being implemented.

Source: http://www.gdnonline.com/Details/873719/GCC%E2%80%99s-green-projects-face-funds-shortage