UAE collaborating with India to boost energy transition and industrialisation efforts

The UAE is working closely with India to boost climate action, with the two countries collaborating on renewable energy initiatives and industrial development growth, state news agency Wam reported on Thursday.

Senior officials from the two countries discussed ways to boost bilateral opportunities in these areas during a visit to India by Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and special envoy for climate change.

The UAE and India agreed to fast-track various initiatives including public-private partnership across renewable power deployment, agriculture efficiency, green hydrogen, sustainable finance and carbon market development, Wam reported.

“The UAE’s deepened collaboration with India on the multiple growth opportunities offered by the energy transition builds up on decades of close UAE-India commercial and diplomatic ties,” Wam quoted Dr Al Jaber as saying.

“Today, India is one of the UAE’s largest trade partners and we welcome the opportunity to capitalise on this strong foundation to power low carbon growth through public and private sector solutions that are good for the climate and the future economic prospects of both our peoples,” he said.

The UAE is currently India’s third-largest trading partner and the second-largest export destination after the US. India is the UAE’s second-largest trading partner and the largest in terms of exports.

India accounted for 9 per cent of the total volume of the UAE's trade with the world in 2021. Trade between the countries stood at $65 billion, data from India’s Ministry of Commerce showed.

In February, the UAE signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with India to boost non-oil trade between the two countries to $100bn in five years, from more than $60bn currently.

This month, the two countries launched an India-UAE Start-up Bridge to provide a platform to investors and entrepreneurs from both countries.

The bridge is part of the trade agreement that will act as a one-stop platform to provide information on start-up opportunities to Indian and UAE entrepreneurs and stakeholders.

During the visit, Dr Al Jaber and the UAE delegation held meetings with Indian government officials and businessmen including Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs; Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food and Public Distribution and Textiles; and Bhupender Yadav, Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and Minister of Labour and Employment.

The delegation also met Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries; Arun Singh, chairman and managing director of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited; Sajjan Jindal, chairman of JSW Group; and Alka Mittal, chairman and managing director of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation.

The meetings with the private sector leaders discussed new potential opportunities in the areas of decarbonisation and climate solutions to further expand UAE-India industrial co-operation, Wam said.

The Emirates also aims to help India achieve its aim of reaching 450 gigawatts of installed renewable energy capacity by 2030, it added.

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