Oman’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals has entered into an agreement with 13 institutions to establish a national hydrogen alliance in order to develop an industry for the production, transport and use of the fuel.
Over the past years, the Gulf states have been increasingly looking towards hydrogen as a business to meet the global demand for clean fuels, in line with this, Oman has formed an alliance which consists of 13 institutions from the public and private sectors, including government agencies, oil and gas operators, educational and research institutions and ports.
His Excellency Eng. Salem bin Nasser Al Aufi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Energy and Minerals, said that the aim of setting up the national hydrogen alliance is to create a leading national and international association between industry, government and public authorities to advance technologies for developing clean hydrogen. The project is part of the country’s energy diversification aims within its Oman Vision 2040 economic transformation plan.
Earlier this year, Oman announced a consortium including state-owned oil firm OQ, which would develop a solar- and wind-energy powered project capable of producing millions of tonnes of zero-carbon green hydrogen per year.
Green hydrogen which is created by splitting water into its two components using electricity from renewable energy sources is increasingly viewed as a fuel to replace fossil fuels and their high carbon emissions.
Gulf oil-producing countries are trying to diversify their economies by creating new sectors and revenues, including through a big push in renewable energy. Abu Dhabi plans to produce and export hydrogen as a fuel and Saudi Arabia is working on a $5 billion hydrogen project in the NEOM high-tech business zone.
