Dr.-Ing. Ouda Salem Head of Group Power to Liquids, Hydrogen Technologies, Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE

HOW ARE YOU CREATING A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR THE REGION?

Originally hailing from the MENA region, and having studied for my masters in Germany with a program focused on renewable energy and energy efficiency for the MENA region, I am quite interconnected with the latest developments in the Middle East with regards to sustainability. On one hand, the technologies we are developing at my group in Fraunhofer ISE should be functioning almost everywhere over the globe. For instance, the ‘Power to Jetfuel’ approach is under industrial deployment by Saudi Aramco, and NEOM is looking at it too.

We are also working with MENA governments; for example, in Morocco we are developing national hydrogen strategies and roadmaps towards a sustainable energy transition, which is just one example. On the capacity building front, I am lecturing in an international renewable energy master program in Germany where students from MENA are regularly graduating.

Simply put, we see the MENA region as in the centre of the global energy transition with significant resource potential and a wonderful geopolitics. Personally, I would like to see the MENA region playing a stronger role with regards to hydrogen and PtX.

WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES YOU FACE?

We are basically an R&D and technology provider and the MENA region’s private and public sector seems to have less focus on its own technological development, which creates an issue. The scale and the pace of change envisaged in the region does not really allow us to see the hidden value in the long term. Issues such as having intellectual property and regional production for such value chain components are an example here. One other important aspect is the capacity building pace is not yet matching the ambition of the MoUs, and even signed projects, and these will mainly grab expertise from other world regions.

For the moment, however, I am quite ambitious and we work with almost every government and large industrial/financial stakeholder, meaning we can identify their potential along the value chain while developing a pathway towards our own sustainability goals.

HOW ARE YOU OVERCOMING SAID CHALLENGES?

For the moment, I am quite ambitious and we work with the many MENA governments and stakeholders by being a global player and exporting H2 and PtX products. That pulls forth the development of local capacities and hopefully it will also lead to a need to do real R&D and for our own technological developments in the region. What is remarkable is the communication between MENA pioneering countries. This is very positive as the willingness to cooperate is essential. It is a key aspect towards building a global successful energy transition towards sustainability.