Saudi Arabia will operate its first train powered by hydrogen in the region. This was disclosed by Minister of Transport and Logistics Saleh Al-Jasser during the COP28 conference in Dubai. “The cost of transportation using alternative energy is declining rapidly,” he said.
The Minister pointed out several challenges that affect the process of removing carbon emissions that includes the increase in population, which requires the increased use of transportation. He further added that developing this sector may sometimes come at the expense of the environment.
“Transportation sector is one of the biggest causes of climate change and the increase in carbon emissions and pollution. In Saudi Arabia, it represents the second largest source of emissions, followed by the energy sector, which constitutes 19 percent of total emissions,” he said.
“Saudi Green Initiative, launched by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Salman, underscored the importance of paying attention to achieving sustainability and making it at the core of environmental initiatives, “he noted.
He noted that the Kingdom aims to reduce carbon emissions by about 267 million tons by the year 2030, and the National Transport Strategy was developed an ambitious goal to reduce emissions by 18 percent by 2030.
The Minister stated that the sustainable transportation plans in the Kingdom are close to reaching their goals and are part of Vision 2030.
“The carbon reduction goals in the Kingdom face four challenges, which are the result of large population growth and thus an increase in the number of transportation users.
The second challenge is that the transition to technologies featuring low emissions necessitate the development of high-cost infrastructure, especially in developing countries,” he noted.
Dwelling on challenges further, he said that as for the third challenge, as in many solutions, such as replacing cars whose engines use fuel with electric cars, it is necessary to increase the production of electrical energy, which must then be produced from non-fossil sources.
Al-Jasser said that the Kingdom wants 50 percent of its energy to be from renewable sources by 2030, and this is a challenge.
To promote the electric vehicles in the region, the minister pointed out that governments may move to enact legislation that encourages the acquisition of these cars, and Saudi Arabia has adopted a legislative framework that supports all policies aimed at adopting all technologies and projects that reduce carbon emissions in terms of means of transportation and other technological solutions.
It may be noted that last month, Saudi Arabia carried out a test run of a hydrogen train, which will be operational soon. The hydrogen-powered train is noted for zero-carbon emission and environment friendliness. This also represents a significant stride toward sustainable and innovative railway transportation.
