Riyadh hedges bets on decarbonisation

The Kingdom is investing in projects to lower the lifecycle emissions of its oil and gas and become a major force in green hydrogen production

Flush with cash after months of near-record oil prices, Saudi Arabia is doubling down on its efforts to both lower the lifecycle emissions of its oil and gas and diversify into low-carbon energy. In late October, state oil company Saudi Aramco launched a venture-capital sustainability fund to invest in emissions-reduction and mitigation technologies, shortly after participating in the Middle East’s first voluntary carbon credits auction, organised by the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) sovereign wealth vehicle. Days earlier, state-affiliated Acwa Power provisionally agreed to plough $10bn into the development of South Africa’s nascent green hydrogen sector. The Saudi government under