3 PAIRING COAL WITH SOLAR: THE UAE’S FRAGMENTED …
77
Coal combustion in power generation emits roughly double the carbon
per unit of electricity delivered versus natural gas, along with local pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury. Coal ash is
often mildly radioactive. 60 Coal soot drifting in the atmosphere becomes
an agent of climate change when deposits darken surfaces of glaciers,
ice caps, and sea ice, reducing the Earth’s reflectivity while promoting
warming and melting of those surfaces.
Dubai’s investment in coal runs counter to more than a decade of
‘clean energy’ image-building and rhetoric from the highest levels of the
UAE government. Abu Dhabi in particular has sought to establish itself
as a ‘green petro-state’ through projects like low-carbon Masdar City,
the hosting of the UN’s renewable energy agency, and the solar power
initiatives described above.
Perhaps accordingly, Dubai’s embrace of coal is being done discreetly,
with none of the fanfare afforded the UAE’s investments into renewables
or real estate. The discretion suggests that ruling elites are uncomfortable
with coal.
Normally Dubai’s media outlets can be counted on to trumpet the
superlatives of the city’s energy milestones. But coverage of Hassyan has
been muted, overshadowed by solar projects and their record-low tariffs—
even though the power output of Dubai’s coal plant, if operated anywhere
near nameplate capacity, will dwarf that of all the UAE’s planned solar
arrays combined. Hassyan’s 3.6 GW of coal capacity operated 60% of the
time would generate almost 19 GWh of electricity in a year. That is nearly
double the 11 GWh of power produced from the UAE’s eventual 5 GW
of solar installations operating at a 25% capacity factor. 61
An indicator of the diverging levels of prestige between Dubai’s
solar parks and its coal plant is evident in their names. Dubai’s ruler,
Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, has named the solar development after himself, seeking to associate his legacy with clean energy.
The uncommon name accorded the coal plant—Hassyan—suggests that
Emirati elites were unwilling to be linked with it. Its location, too, is
suggestive. Hassyan is being built on the least populated and furthest
reach of Dubai’s coastline, directly abutting the Abu Dhabi border.
The UAE government’s energy policy documentation keeps Dubai’s
coal plant at arm’s length. The government’s online energy portal devotes
multiple paragraphs to nuclear, solar, wind, and waste-to-energy projects.
Coal is dismissed in just two sentences, with no links to further detail,
77
Coal combustion in power generation emits roughly double the carbon
per unit of electricity delivered versus natural gas, along with local pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury. Coal ash is
often mildly radioactive. 60 Coal soot drifting in the atmosphere becomes
an agent of climate change when deposits darken surfaces of glaciers,
ice caps, and sea ice, reducing the Earth’s reflectivity while promoting
warming and melting of those surfaces.
Dubai’s investment in coal runs counter to more than a decade of
‘clean energy’ image-building and rhetoric from the highest levels of the
UAE government. Abu Dhabi in particular has sought to establish itself
as a ‘green petro-state’ through projects like low-carbon Masdar City,
the hosting of the UN’s renewable energy agency, and the solar power
initiatives described above.
Perhaps accordingly, Dubai’s embrace of coal is being done discreetly,
with none of the fanfare afforded the UAE’s investments into renewables
or real estate. The discretion suggests that ruling elites are uncomfortable
with coal.
Normally Dubai’s media outlets can be counted on to trumpet the
superlatives of the city’s energy milestones. But coverage of Hassyan has
been muted, overshadowed by solar projects and their record-low tariffs—
even though the power output of Dubai’s coal plant, if operated anywhere
near nameplate capacity, will dwarf that of all the UAE’s planned solar
arrays combined. Hassyan’s 3.6 GW of coal capacity operated 60% of the
time would generate almost 19 GWh of electricity in a year. That is nearly
double the 11 GWh of power produced from the UAE’s eventual 5 GW
of solar installations operating at a 25% capacity factor. 61
An indicator of the diverging levels of prestige between Dubai’s
solar parks and its coal plant is evident in their names. Dubai’s ruler,
Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, has named the solar development after himself, seeking to associate his legacy with clean energy.
The uncommon name accorded the coal plant—Hassyan—suggests that
Emirati elites were unwilling to be linked with it. Its location, too, is
suggestive. Hassyan is being built on the least populated and furthest
reach of Dubai’s coastline, directly abutting the Abu Dhabi border.
The UAE government’s energy policy documentation keeps Dubai’s
coal plant at arm’s length. The government’s online energy portal devotes
multiple paragraphs to nuclear, solar, wind, and waste-to-energy projects.
Coal is dismissed in just two sentences, with no links to further detail,