Developing a green economy in Saudi Arabia

Decarbonisation policies are gaining serious traction in the kingdom, as the pressing need to reduce CO2 emissions forces a rethink of the oil giant's priorities

Across the MENA region, the awareness of environmental issues and the need to reduce domestic energy consumption have risen to the top of the political agenda. Since the beginning of the 2010s, the Gulf countries have engaged in an incremental process of energy pricing reconfiguration, promulgation of energy efficiency policies, and national strategies to reduce their domestic hydrocarbon demand/carbon emissions. Saudi Arabia is not an exception to the general regional trend. Yet, little focus has been paid to its recent efforts to promote domestic decarbonisation. Although Saudi Arabia still has a long way to go, it has implemented a number of policies to attempt a comprehensive reduction o