UAE teams up with Belgium to build the first hydrogen electrolyser plant in the Gulf

Over the past decade, the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have launched ambitious economic diversification strategies as an integral part of their National Vision programmes. The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) unveiled “Operation 300bn” in 2021 to boost industrial development in the country and bring the sector’s contribution to GDP from AED 133 billion (EUR 34 billion) to AED 300 billion (EUR 76 billion) by 2031. Through this strategy, the UAE is working to expand its manufacturing base, while supporting the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Alongside Operation 300bn, the UAE also introduced a new programme to encourage technological development in the industrial and production sectors in late 2022. This strategy seeks to develop 11 industrial sectors, with particular emphasis on activities related to the green industry, hydrogen-based technologies, agriculture, water, health care and pharmaceuticals, and space. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE’s Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, President-Designate of COP28, CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Chairman of Masdar, the global leader in green technology, announced the UAE was to develop no fewer than 30 industrial projects worth AED 6 billion (EUR 1.5 billion) to produce green energy, the most important of which is none other than the Federation’s first hydrogen electrolyser plant. This new technology will be used to produce hydrogen, a sustainable alternative to oil. 

The announcement was made during the "Make it in the Emirates" forum, a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, and ADNOC, which took place in the capital city of Abu Dhabi on 31 May. The forum seeks to accelerate the industrialisation of the country and help to diversify its economy away from oil, notably by increasing the localisation of production. As per Jaber's statement, ADNOC is also committed to allocating more than AED 20 billion towards securing structures and metal products from local Emirati suppliers, thus bolstering their support for the Emiratisation of the economy. 

The 1GW hydrogen electrolyser plant is to be built by Belgian manufacturer John Cockerill, in partnership with ADNOC and Strata Manufacturing, an Emirati state-owned company supplying aviation parts, through the establishment of a joint venture company. The UAE expects to be able to sell the produced electrolysers locally as well as internationally.

These developments support ongoing industrial development in a manner that is supportive of climate ambitions, as laid out in the UAE Net Zero strategic initiative. “It is our sector’s paramount responsibility to demonstrate the feasibility of working concurrently toward two objectives: reducing emissions and achieving sustainable growth. (…) With this in mind, this year’s forum is centred around bolstering sustainable practices and promoting the adoption of clean energy solutions within the industrial sector,” Jaber explained.