Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, state minister for energy affairs in Saudi Arabia, said over the weekend that he had hopes for the kingdom to become "another Germany" when it comes to renewables amid plans to generate 50 per cent of its power from clean sources.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest exporter of crude, plans to sell green hydrogen produced in the kingdom to Europe.  How?  "If the economics allow for it, the kingdom intends to pipe the clean fuel. 

To this end,  a consortium comprising industrial gases company Air Products, Saudi-based clean energy company Acwa Power and Neom, the planned futuristic mega city in the kingdom’s north-west, agreed on a $5 billion project to produce hydrogen using solar and wind energy ... one of the ways the Riyadh is adjusting to the global energy industry's shift to cleaner fuels.

Hydrogen has become a popular alternative fuel among Gulf oil producers who are looking to diversify their energy sources. Moreover,   

clean hydrogen can slash greenhouse gas emissions from the hydrocarbons sector by 34 per cent, according to Bloomberg. In the U.S. alone, McKinsey estimates that the development of a hydrogen economy could generate $140 billion in annual revenue.

More renewable projects, particularly solar initiatives, will be announced soon, Prince Abdulaziz said. The kingdom has an ambitious renewables strategy and plans to add 60 gigawatts of clean energy capacity to the grid by 2030.