Saudi Arabia’s grandiose climate plans struggle to take off

Saudi Arabia’s grandiose climate plans struggle to take off

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When Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced Saudi Arabia’s “green initiative” this year he did so with the type of eye-catching pledge that has come to characterise the young royal’s grandiose plans to modernise the kingdom.

Promising that the world’s top oil exporter would lead the “next green era”, Prince Mohammed vowed that 50 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s power generation would be provided by renewables by 2030, with the other 50 per cent fuelled by gas. Riyadh would also plant 10bn trees in the desert nation in the coming decades.

“As a leading global oil producer, we are fully aware of our share of responsibility in advancing the fight against the climate crisis,” the prince said as he unveiled the plan in March. “And as [with] our pioneering role in stabilising energy markets during the oil and gas era, we will act to lead the next green era.”

But as with many of the prince’s ambitious schemes, sceptics question whether his rhetoric will be matched with tangible action on the ground. The kingdom burns about 1m barrels of oil equivalent a day to fuel its power system,