UAE, France to partner for clean energy development acceleration

The programme will be officially launched during COP28 in Dubai in November 2023.

United Arab Emirates (UAE) and France will launch a bilateral programme that aims to develop commercial and investable opportunities to speed up the development of clean energy in hard-to-abate industries.

This came following the conferment of Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, President-Designate for COP28, and Chairman of Masdar with Bruno Le Maire, French Minister of the Economy, Finance, and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, as part of the French Minister’s visit to the UAE.

In a statement, Masdar said the partnership is anchored on the successes of Emirati and French firms in the clean and renewable energy sectors, noting the development and operation of over 6.2 gigawatts of clean energy globally led by industry leaders from both countries.

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“Through this bilateral program, the UAE and France will endeavour to deliver tangible, positive impacts in the dimensions of climate change mitigation and adaptation and optimize the impact of their climate-oriented projects on biodiversity,” the statement said.

The programme, which will be launched at the COP28 in Dubai in November 2023, will focus its efforts mainly on the two countries and prioritise low-carbon hydrogen and sustainable power production, including their value chains.

The government will also look into leveraging public financing tools to facilitate eligible climate-friendly projects when appropriate.