Saudi Arabia aims to reach net zero emissions by 2060
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged on Saturday that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, will reach net zero emissions by 2060, ten years after the United States.
Prince Mohammed said the kingdom would more than double its annual target to cut carbon emissions to nearly 280 million tons.
Prince Mohammed and Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Energy, said that OPEC member Saudi Arabia will address climate change while ensuring the stability of the oil market, stressing the continued importance of hydrocarbons.
The Crown Prince and the Minister of Energy were speaking during the activities of the Green Saudi Initiative, which comes ahead of the twenty-sixth United Nations conference on climate change in Glasgow between October 31 and November 12, during which it is hoped that an agreement will be reached on greater reduction in emissions to confront the rise in temperature. Earth.
The United States, the world's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, is committed to the timeframe for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. But China and India, the world's first and third emitters, respectively, have not met that timeframe.
For his part, CEO of Saudi oil giant Aramco (SE:2222) Amin Nasser said on Saturday that the hydrocarbon sector should not be demonized. He added that the company aims to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
Nasser also called for more global investment to ensure adequate supplies of crude oil.
Prince Mohammed said in a recorded speech that the Kingdom "aims to reach zero neutrality in 2060 through the circular carbon economy approach, and in line with the Kingdom's development plans... and preserve the Kingdom's leading role in enhancing the security and stability of global energy markets."
He said the kingdom would join a global initiative to cut methane emissions by 30 percent from 2020 levels by 2030, something the United States and the European Union were urging.
US climate envoy John Kerry is scheduled to attend a broader Middle East green summit hosted by Riyadh on Monday.
Prince Abdulaziz, Minister of Energy, said that Saudi Arabia, one of the signatories to the Paris climate agreement, has already provided details of its nationally determined contribution plans, which are country-by-country targets as part of global efforts to prevent global average temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius. above pre-industrial levels.
The Green Saudi Initiative, which the crown prince said will include investments of more than 700 billion riyals ($186.6 billion), aims to cut 278 million tons of carbon emissions annually, up from 130 million in an earlier target.
Saudi Arabia pledged in March to reduce carbon emissions by more than 4 percent from international contributions through initiatives that include generating 50 percent of its energy needs from renewable energy sources by 2030 and planting one billion trees in the desert country.
Official media said that United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed, during a phone call with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz, the two Saudi initiatives to reduce emissions.
* Hydrocarbons are still necessary
The Kingdom's economy is still highly dependent on income from oil, as diversification of the economy's sources has not lived up to the ambitions set by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi officials say the world will still need Saudi crude for decades to come.
"The world cannot function without hydrocarbons, fossil fuels and renewable energy and none of them will be a savior, it must be a comprehensive solution," the energy minister said.
"We need to be inclusive and inclusiveness requires openness to accepting the efforts of others as long as they reduce emissions," he added. He said that the young generation in the kingdom "will not wait for us to change their future."
He said that the target level of net-zero emissions may be achieved before 2060, but the kingdom needs time to do things "correctly".
The United Arab Emirates, a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), this month announced a plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
*Green trend
Saudi Arabia has faced criticism for being too slow, with Climate Action Tracker rating it the lowest possible rating of "seriously insufficient".
Experts say it is too early to know the impact of emerging solar and wind projects in Saudi Arabia. It opened its first renewable energy plant in April and its first wind farm started generating electricity in August.
Giant projects, such as the future city of NEOM, also include plans for green energy, which includes a hydrogen production facility at a cost of five billion dollars, and Saudi entities linked to the state focus on raising funds related to green projects.
Some investors are concerned about the kingdom's carbon footprint. Others say Saudi Arabia emits the least carbon per barrel of oil, and that de facto ruler Prince Mohammed is serious about diversifying the economy.
"The carbon footprint is clearly an issue. But we would like to highlight that decarbonization is actually going to be slow, and that oil will be around for some time," Tim Ash of BlueBay Asset Management said in emailed comments.
(dollar = 3.7507 riyals)