Mideast news outlets including Asharq Al-Awsat and Gulf Business reported on October 27 that the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) have formed a clean energy partnership. Sheikh Khalid bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nanhyan, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Office and Chairman of the Executive Committee of ADNOC’s Board of Directors, is responsible for setting up this deal.
With this partnership, EWEC’s nuclear power and PV generation assets will provide all the electricity fed into ADNOC’s grid starting in 2022. Website Mechanical Electrical & Plumbing stated that ADNOC will become the first oil and gas producer to eliminate fossil fuels from its operations. By wholly adopting nuclear power and solar PV, ADNOC will gain the reputation of being the “least carbon-intensive” player in its industry. The deal will also contribute significantly toward the UAE’s goals of reducing 25% of its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and achieving net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050.
Gulf Business reported that the “carbon intensity” of the crude oil from the Murban Bab Oil Field in Abu Dhabi is already lower than 50% of the industry’s average. The deal is expected to further decarbonize ADNOC’s production of various fuel products, including jet fuel.
Mechanical Electrical & Plumbing pointed out that the partnership is the largest of its kind in the oil and gas industry. However, details about the deal including the amount of electricity supplied per year and the price have yet to be revealed. According to the coverage of the event by various news outlets, the energy supplied to ADNOC will be endorsed under a renewable energy certification scheme registered by EWEC.
Noor Abu Dhabi Solar Power Plant, which is the world’s largest single-site solar power plant, is selling power to EWEC under a 25-year PPA. However, its scale will soon be surpassed by the Al Dhafra project that is also located in Abu Dhabi and now under development. The commissioning of the Al Dhafra project is scheduled for 2022. It is worth noting that Jinko Solar Holding, which was part of the consortium behind the development of Noor Abu Dhabi Solar Power Plant, is also jointly developing the Al Dhafra project with French multinational energy company EDF Group.