The UAE has been ranked in the top 10 in 12 of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) indicators for fostering energy transition as the country attempts to move towards clean energy.

These indicators include the electrification rate, solid fuels use, quality of electricity supply, share of electricity from coal generation, diversification of import counterparts, wholesale gas price and factors relating to energy imports, laws and infrastructure.

The WEF stated that the UAE ranks second regionally after Qatar and 64th globally on the Energy Transition Index (ETI) 2021 and that the country’s performance has seen a very positive and steady improvement over the last decade, indicating its readiness towards full energy transition.

Is also said that the UAE leads on the stability of institutions and regulatory framework, which are critical enablers of energy transition and is making strong progress on economic growth and energy security components remain strong.

The country, which announced in 2017 that it aims to use 50 percent clean energy by 2050, can make further improvements by targeting reduction in carbon intensity of the energy mix, and by pursuing pathways to decouple economic growth from energy consumption, and it must take steps to diversify away from fossil fuel, the WEF said.

“The UAE’s natural resource endowments, legacy energy infrastructure, and availability of skilled labour can position it favourably in the new energy landscape – particularly by investing in infrastructure and technologies for green hydrogen,” it said in a press release.

Globally, Sweden ranks first in the ETI for the fourth consecutive year, followed by Norway and Denmark. Regionally, Qatar ranks first, followed by the UAE and Morocco, and Saudi Arabia is eighth regionally.

In terms of other global rankings for Gulf states, Saudi Arabia was 81st in the ETI, Qatar 53rd, Kuwait 102nd, Bahrain 108th and Oman 74th. The ranking was based on a total of 115 countries, with Zimbabwe falling into 115th place.

Lebanon ranked lowest in the Middle East, falling into 112th place globally.

(Writing by Imogen Lillywhite; editing by Seban Scaria)

(imogen.lillywhite@refinitiv.com)

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