Dii Desert Energy unveils the first-of-a-kind MENA Status 2025 & Scenarios until 2030 report[i], covering all emission free technologies, from solar, wind and storage to hydrogen.
Dii Desert Energy, a leading energy transition think tank in the MENA region since 2009, is delighted to present its latest report ‘MENA Energy Outlook 2025 – Renewables, Hydrogen and Energy Storage Insights 2030’. This first-of-a-kind report for the region provides the current status across all relevant technologies and countries in MENA, as well as a forward-looking picture of how the energy transition in MENA could unfold by 2030, leveraging insights from the decade and a half long Renewable Projects Database, the MENA H2 tracker and the newly added Energy Storage Projects database.
Cornelius Matthes, CEO of Dii Desert Energy: “When Dii started 16 years ago, solar and wind were expensive and exotic. The recent the lowest cost solar and wind on the planet contributed to drive a massive expansion of installed capacity. The MENA region is poised to soon become a global powerhouse of the energy transformation, supported by pioneers like the UAE. With this first of kind report, we are delighted to contribute with complete and transparent market information on all emission free technologies.”
H.E. Eng. Sharif Al Olama, Undersecretary for Energy and Petroleum Affairs, Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure of the UAE, said: “The UAE is committed to accelerating the global energy system transformation through innovation, strategic partnerships, and infrastructure development. As we advance our Hydrogen Roadmap for 2025, we are looking into scaling up low-carbon hydrogen production, expanding storage and transport infrastructure, and strengthening international collaborations to position the UAE as a key producer and exporter. While UAE has been a pioneer in solar and climate action, hydrogen has become one of the key pillars of the decarbonization strategy. We value the contributions of our strategic partners, including Dii Desert Energy, in advancing the hydrogen agenda.”
The MENA region has experienced significant growth in renewable energy investments over the past decade, mainly driven by the lowest LCoE for wind and solar globally, a key currency to attract also local value creation and energy-intensive industries like green steel. However, low emission hydrogen and its derivatives have yet to become competitive with fossil energy sources, primarily due to the lack of a CO₂ price and the persistence of fossil fuel subsidies.
Dii Desert Energy’s unique insights and close connection to the latest developments in projects and markets make this report an invaluable resource for understanding the current landscape and future trajectory of renewable energy, hydrogen and energy storage in the MENA region.
Key findings from the report include:
- Renewable Energy (excluding green hydrogen):
- Solar PV and Wind: Installed capacity of solar PV and wind doubled from 15 GW to 30 GW over past 5 years.
- Future Growth: an additional 20 GW of new RE capacity is expected per year by 2030 in conservative scenario and over 40 GW per year in a green revolution scenario.
- Large-scale Projects: GW-scale single projects have become the norm for PV.
- Leadership: The United Arab Emirates lead the way with highest installed capacity.
- Low Emission Hydrogen:
- Projects Growth: 117 projects announced as of end 2024 (vs. 67 at end 2023).
- Projects Type: Over 90% are green projects, with the rest being blue and yellow developments.
- Renewable Energy requirements: The equivalent solar & wind capacity will be up to 400 GW.
- Strategies & targets: Almost all MENA countries have published ambitious strategies and targets, total approx.10mtpa.
- Offtake: International offtake is still the main focus, but local offtake is on rise.
- Projects size: Average projects size is among the largest internationally.
- Energy Storage Momentum:
- Importance: Energy storage is becoming increasingly important as outlined in a recent Dii Desert Energy study ‘Energy storage, the new frontier’, with significant developments in battery energy storage systems (BESS) announced in recent months.
- Major projects: Some of the largest BESS globally has been commissioned recently in MENA.
You can download the full report at www.dii-desertenergy.org/publications.
About Dii Desert Energy
Dii Desert Energy is an independent, international, industry network operating from Dubai. With its footprint in MENA, it is connecting people, countries and clean energy markets globally, paving the way for “net, or sub, zero emission”, secure and affordable energy from the deserts. Dii’s platform of more than 120 companies and organizations from over 36 countries is mobilizing top executives, government decision makers, R&D institutions and academia.
