PARIS: The International Energy Agency (IEA) has underscored the importance of industrial innovation to help unlock the Sultanate of Oman’s competitive advantage and boost low-carbon exports.
In a report, the Paris-based agency also urged Oman to harness its energy and mineral resources to become a leader in industrial innovation by exploiting opportunities in mining and technology manufacturing. It cited the potential for capitalising on hydrogen production as a primary sector, and investing in clean energy-powered industrial projects in the downstream sector.
These measures, the report noted, will help advance the country’s future economy and must thus be integrated into a strong road-map for industrial innovation by adopting international best practices. This road-map will push Oman to the forefront of global sustainable energy, IEA stated.
The report suggested that the road-map includes topics that focus on technological development in the hydrocarbons, new energies and hydrogen sectors so that Oman can develop a diverse portfolio of both hydrocarbons and carbon capture initiatives, while at the same time moving towards developing new energies, which requires technologies such as electrolyses. Furthermore, carbon capture and storage technologies represent an opportunity to strengthen the sector and make it competitive in terms of cost and sustainability, it said.
Additionally, the road-map must adopt hydrogen as a new economic engine, positioning Oman as the sixth largest exporter of green hydrogen in the world by 2030. The road-map must include the digitisation of renewable energy systems, as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things and machine learning technologies will allow Oman to enhance energy production, storage and distribution, and advanced energy storage solutions. Oman will soon begin generating many renewable energy for the uses of electricity and green hydrogen, which requires this change in the energy-to-storage mix.
Other topics that can be included in the road-map are sustainable value chains, modernising and expanding infrastructure and industrial infrastructure to accommodate the next wave of energy innovations, improving logistics services, and building capabilities for high-tech manufacturing, including establishing pioneering centres of excellence, public and private research centres, and information centres to disseminate expertise.
Dr Abdullah bin Sulaiman al Abri, the international advisor and representative of the Sultanate of Oman to the International Energy Agency, explained that there are new economic horizons for which Oman must be prepared to benefit from the potential of new energies and hydrogen to expand its industrial and innovative horizons. — ONA
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