114 F. AL-SULAYMAN
factors needed to align so that serious progress on renewables development could be made. For the first decade of its life, Masdar wasn’t able to
garner traction as anything more than proof of concept; a demonstration
of what a sustainable city could look like. Even its 10 MWp solar array, the
largest of its kind in the region at the time it was built, would be followed
by a lull in development as the economics of solar played catchup. It was
only really in the period following 2013, when the economic case for
renewables became more attractive, that Masdar’s profile began to rise
again; this time with a focus on its growing renewable energy development portfolio and not the city from which it emerged. This would all
seem to suggest that in this political economy, vision and leadership were
insufficient on their own, and that a strong underlying economic case for
renewables development was always necessary.
In a further acknowledgment of the power of this image shift, since its
establishment, Masdar has also been used by the Emirati government to
engage in targeted development aid, building a wide range of renewable
energy projects in Africa, the South Pacific and in the developing world
more generally. 48 Dubai too has engaged in public diplomacy seeking to
portray an image of sustainable and future oriented urban development; in
a collaboration with National Geographic, Dubai has sought to document
and publicize its energy transition. 49
It is more difficult to assess to what degree the concept of ‘greening’
their image has played a role in pushing forward renewables development
in the other GCC states. The manner in which the renewables agenda
is being carried out across these states would suggest that the primary
reasons are economic, but that there is increasingly a realization that
the credentials gained from this kind of development can be leveraged
to project a modernized image of the state; a helpful shift considering
decades of negative associations with the role the states have played in
hydrocarbon extraction and the climate crisis.
Conclusion
After a slow start it appears that states in the region are finally on the
precipice of a more serious effort to transition their energy systems toward
a more renewable future.
Collectively, it is clear that the availability of cheap hydrocarbon
resources and associated rents delayed the early adoption of renewable
energy on a large scale; the abundance of solar and capital resources,
factors needed to align so that serious progress on renewables development could be made. For the first decade of its life, Masdar wasn’t able to
garner traction as anything more than proof of concept; a demonstration
of what a sustainable city could look like. Even its 10 MWp solar array, the
largest of its kind in the region at the time it was built, would be followed
by a lull in development as the economics of solar played catchup. It was
only really in the period following 2013, when the economic case for
renewables became more attractive, that Masdar’s profile began to rise
again; this time with a focus on its growing renewable energy development portfolio and not the city from which it emerged. This would all
seem to suggest that in this political economy, vision and leadership were
insufficient on their own, and that a strong underlying economic case for
renewables development was always necessary.
In a further acknowledgment of the power of this image shift, since its
establishment, Masdar has also been used by the Emirati government to
engage in targeted development aid, building a wide range of renewable
energy projects in Africa, the South Pacific and in the developing world
more generally. 48 Dubai too has engaged in public diplomacy seeking to
portray an image of sustainable and future oriented urban development; in
a collaboration with National Geographic, Dubai has sought to document
and publicize its energy transition. 49
It is more difficult to assess to what degree the concept of ‘greening’
their image has played a role in pushing forward renewables development
in the other GCC states. The manner in which the renewables agenda
is being carried out across these states would suggest that the primary
reasons are economic, but that there is increasingly a realization that
the credentials gained from this kind of development can be leveraged
to project a modernized image of the state; a helpful shift considering
decades of negative associations with the role the states have played in
hydrocarbon extraction and the climate crisis.
Conclusion
After a slow start it appears that states in the region are finally on the
precipice of a more serious effort to transition their energy systems toward
a more renewable future.
Collectively, it is clear that the availability of cheap hydrocarbon
resources and associated rents delayed the early adoption of renewable
energy on a large scale; the abundance of solar and capital resources,