Dubai launches region’s ‘first industrial scale’ green hydrogen plant

Dubai launches region’s ‘first industrial scale’ green hydrogen plant

A Dubai-based project described as the "first industrial scale, solar-driven green hydrogen facility in the Middle East and North Africa" has been inaugurated, with those behind the development hoping it will help catalyze the region's renewable energy sector. In a statement Wednesday, said power for the pilot project — a collaboration with the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority and Expo 2020 Dubai — would come from the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, a vast solar facility slated to have a production capacity of 5,000 megawatts by 2030. Described by the International Energy Agency as a "versatile energy carrier," hydrogen has a diverse range of applications and can be deployed in sectors such as industry and transport. It can be produced in a number of ways. One method includes using electrolysis, with an electric current splitting water into oxygen and hydrogen. If the electricity used in the process comes from a renewable source, such as wind or solar, then some call it "green" or "renewable" hydrogen. Currently, the vast majority of hydrogen generation is based on fossil fuels, and "green" hydrogen is expensive to produce. In an interview with CNBC's Dan Murphy, Siemens Energy CEO Christian Bruch was asked