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Countries around the Persian Gulf are falling behind with regard to renewables, both for technical and for political reasons. And they need to diversify – just like the rest of us – if they are going to keep local consumption from using up too much of the oil they would rather sell.
If coverage in the popular press is any guide, it would seem that the global center of gravity for renewable energy has shifted to the oil-producing Middle East. Saudi Arabia has been praised for its recent announcement of plans for a gargantuan 54 gigawatt (GW) installation of solar power over the next twenty years. Kuwait alleges that it won’t be proportionally far behind. And Abu Dhabi has received numerous accolades for its 2006 pledge to develop a zero carbon city, along with its promise of an “unlimited budget” for renewables, which by 2020 would produce 7% of its electricity.
These sorts of announcements from the Gulf have won over important players in the environmental community. First-mover Abu Dhabi has reaped a substantial image boost. Remarkably, the United Nations selected this opec member state – home to one of the world’s largest per capita carbon footprints – to host its newly created International Renewable Energy Agency, or IRENA. The irony of the choice was not lost on Germany, which argued that its proven credentials in energy conservation and a 40 gw installation of functioning renewable generating capacity made it a more credible choice. In the three years since losing its IRENA bid, Germany has redoubled its renewables commitment. It decided to decommission its entire nuclear generation fleet and installed an additional 15 GW of solar and 3 GW of wind capacity.
Published in Aspenia International.
