Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources of the Arab Republic of Egypt, said that Egypt and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) have reached an agreement to develop a comprehensive roadmap for reducing methane emissions in Egypt’s petroleum and gas sector. The signing of this agreement is slated to take place during the ongoing COP28, according to the minister.
The Egyptian minister, in a statement to the Emirates News Agency (WAM) on the sidelines of his participation in the COP28 climate summit held at Expo Dubai, highlighted that his country’s participation in COP28 aims to continue the path ‘towards carbon removal,’ initiated during Egypt’s hosting of the previous edition, COP27, in Sharm El Sheikh. He commended the role of the UAE in chairing the current edition, describing it as an ‘executive summit.'”
El Molla highlighted the approval of concrete projects focusing on green hydrogen and its derivatives in collaboration with the Norwegian company SCATEC. This move supports
Egypt toward becoming a hub for hydrogen and green fuels.
He points out that Fertiglobe company a few days ago announced the export of the first shipment of green ammonia in the world, which was produced at the company’s facilities in Egypt, and announced the first operation to supply ships with green methanol in the Middle East region at East Port Said.
The Minister emphasised his country’s endorsement of these progressive actions at COP28 and global commitments to climate action. These include the implementation of the hydrogen strategy, formation of the Supreme Hydrogen Council, and the revision of the 2040 Energy Strategy. He elaborated on Egypt’s prospects in the low-carbon hydrogen economy, estimating its potential to contribute approximately $18 billion to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and generate around 100,000 job opportunities by 2040. Egypt aims to achieve an 8% share in the global hydrogen market by the same timeframe.
El Molla called on the countries participating in the climate
summit to make unremitting efforts to confront climate change and support the ‘Just Transition’ action programme, taking into account financial and technical support for developing countries, especially the African continent.
He highlighted the engagement of global energy corporations in voluntary pledges, aligning with standards related to production, quality, distribution, and more. Their aim is to achieve zero carbon emissions, safeguard the environment, and tackle the impacts of climate change. It’s worth noting that, in the ongoing edition of the Climate Summit at Expo Dubai, energy companies are presenting their products more extensively than in previous summits.
According to El Molla, the Egyptian government is making efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, adapt to its effects, and benefit from international momentum toward reducing methane emissions, a crucial element of the Egyptian petroleum sector’s carbon reduction strategy, to achieve the goals of the World Bank ‘Zero Routine Flarin
g’ initiative to end routine flaring by 2030.
He pointed out that Egypt’s petroleum and gas sector has successfully implemented 30 projects to reduce routine burning of flare gases, resulting in an annual saving of around $200 million and a reduction of emissions by approximately 1.4 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually.
He highlighted the completion of two campaigns to measure methane emissions in collaboration with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), covering over 30 production sites.
Source: Emirates News Agency