Net-zero is not only a destination but a journey. The UAE has just made the first third of its climb steeper, which should make for an easier ascent later and more chance of reaching the summit. With the eyes of the climate world on the country as November’s Cop28 conference draws near, the next seven years will be decisive.
Under 2015’s Paris Agreement, each country is supposed to submit a “Nationally Determined Contribution”, explaining how it will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and otherwise limit climate change and deal with its effects. This NDC should be updated every five years with greater levels of stringency. The UAE issued a second NDC in September, and has just released an update with major increases in ambition and detail.
With its latest announced targets, the UAE aims to show that a major oil and gas-exporting country, with an economy still largely powered by hydrocarbons, in a hot, arid region, a federal system of government, with rapid population and economic expansion, can make rapid progress on decarbonisation.
Credible plans and solid progress to date will increase the chances for successful negotiations in November and blaze a trail for other states with similar issues.
Overall emissions from a significantly larger economy will be 182 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, down from 208 million tonnes in the earlier version of the second NDC, 225 million tonnes in 2019, and 301 million tonnes in 2030 in a “business-as-usual” case with no climate action.
The population is expected to grow by 14 per cent and the economy by 24 per cent between 2019 and 2030. The reduction target is therefore more ambitious in per-person or per-GDP terms and compared to countries with stable or shrinking populations.
The targets cover every major emitting sector. Electricity generation will double but carbon dioxide emissions per kilowatt-hour will halve. Industry will see major expansion, but its emissions will drop 5 per cent. Transport kilometres travelled will also go up, but total emissions will drop slightly. Emissions from waste will rise a little.
So, the major burden of cuts falls on buildings, where emissions should fall 56 per cent, and agriculture, down 22 per cent.
To achieve these ambitions, the UAE will have to pull every worthwhile lever. Key elements include decarbonising electricity and water generation with nuclear, solar, batteries and the use of more efficient reverse osmosis desalination instead of thermal methods. In fact, with all but 3.8 gigawatts of clean generation accounted for already, it is likely the UAE will go well beyond its existing target of 19.8 gigawatts by 2030.
This lower-carbon power sector reduces the emissions assigned to industries such as oil and gas, and aluminium, which have signed up to zero-carbon electricity supplies. Cement plants will switch inputs, and employ carbon capture and storage. Iron and steel plants will run on hydrogen, and the government will preferentially procure low-carbon steel and cement. The government will offer “contracts for difference” to pay companies for the increased cost of carbon capture facilities.
Public transport will expand, with metros in Abu Dhabi and some cities of the Northern Emirates, more focus on the “last mile”, walkability and cycling, and the expansion of the Etihad Rail national network for freight and passengers. Interestingly, the NDC suggests financial incentives for users of electric battery vehicles.
Waste will be reduced by a “circular economy” approach, recycling and waste-to-energy to reduce landfill. Building energy use will be cut with retrofits, new cooling methods, tighter standards for appliances and stronger codes for new construction. Agriculture will see reductions in water use through new technologies.
The capture of atmospheric carbon dioxide will also increase via an increase in planting mangroves in coastal environments, and a pilot for direct air capture by 2030.
Although not strictly a required part of an NDC, what the UAE will do beyond its borders is also important. International aviation and shipping have their own targets through their global governing bodies, and the UAE will produce hydrogen-based fuels such as methanol, ammonia and e-kerosene to drive them.
Clean energy company Masdar will deploy more than 100 gigawatts of renewables by 2030, most of which will be outside the UAE, including its existing investments and partnerships in the US, UK, Africa, Central Asia and elsewhere. As is known elsewhere, Adnoc plans to increase its oil and gas production to meet international market demand, which has to fit within the global carbon budget.
Three points in particular are novel and important: financial support for carbon capture, incentives for electric vehicles, and the trial of direct air capture.
A national carbon dioxide pipeline network will likely be needed to support carbon capture on numerous different industries. Hydrogen and its derivatives will become common and familiar fuels. The expansion of public transport and walkability will make living, working and holidaying in the UAE quite different.
The plan offers business possibilities of all kinds, from expanding renewable energy, upgrading building, introducing new technologies for water-saving and cooling, to selling and charging electric cars, making and using hydrogen, and many more.
This will be most successful when it gives opportunities to as wide a range of companies as possible, from the national giants such as Adnoc, Dewa and Masdar, to small businesses and start-ups.
The world of climate tech is increasingly competitive. Regional neighbours face many similar challenges – being a trailblazer may be tough and risky, but offers the greatest rewards. Some things will not work out, while other unexpected opportunities emerge.
2030 is not far away for such an ambitious plan – but for the sake of a liveable country and planet, it is one foothill to conquer on the way to the net-zero summit of 2050.
Robin M. Mills is CEO of Qamar Energy, and author of The Myth of the Oil Crisis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'Midnights'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Taylor%20Swift%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Republic%20Records%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
Honeymoonish
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elie%20El%20Samaan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENour%20Al%20Ghandour%2C%20Mahmoud%20Boushahri%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
Players Selected for La Liga Trials
U18 Age Group
Name: Ahmed Salam (Malaga)
Position: Right Wing
Nationality: Jordanian
Name: Yahia Iraqi (Malaga)
Position: Left Wing
Nationality: Morocco
Name: Mohammed Bouherrafa (Almeria)
Position: Centre-Midfield
Nationality: French
Name: Mohammed Rajeh (Cadiz)
Position: Striker
Nationality: Jordanian
U16 Age Group
Name: Mehdi Elkhamlichi (Malaga)
Position: Lead Striker
Nationality: Morocco
LEAGUE CUP QUARTER-FINAL DRAW
Stoke City v Tottenham
Brentford v Newcastle United
Arsenal v Manchester City
Everton v Manchester United
All ties are to be played the week commencing December 21.
Avatar%20(2009)
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJames%20Cameron%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESam%20Worthington%2C%20Zoe%20Saldana%2C%20Sigourney%20Weaver%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
More coverage from the Future Forum
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, David Warner, Adam Zampa
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
