Bahrain's eyes are on blue and green hydrogen
TDT | Manama
The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
The new Industrial strategy for 2022 to 2026 unveiled by the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism will boost renewable energy sectors, including that for “blue and green hydrogen production.
“This will contribute towards achieving commitment to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2060,” said Zayed bin Rashid Alzayani. The strategy, a pillar in the Economic Recovery Plan, also targets downstream industries in aluminium and petrochemicals, food, pharmaceuticals, and micro-electronics.
Five pillars
Explaining, the minister said the Industrial Sector Strategy focuses on five main pillars - Promoting local industries, Investing in infrastructure, Improving investor experience, Providing career guidance for Bahrainis, and Updating legislation.
Industrial excellence award
“There are several initiatives within the strategy to promote local industries,” the minister said. One of the initiatives will focus on launching programmes to encourage large factories to purchase products and services from local small and medium factories.
The initiative also calls for launching an Industrial Excellence Award to encourage competition. “It also calls for providing industrial incubation and accelerate opportunities for SMEs, improving regional import and export supply chains through Export Bahrain solutions, and developing the “Made in Bahrain” trademark,” said the minister.
Industrial innovation centre
The ministry, he said, also plans to set up an “industrial innovation centre” to promote the adoption of Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies. For this, the government will dedicate areas to promising industries and improve amenities and services to industrial areas.
The government, the minister said, will also intensify inspections on industrial districts and encourage the use of renewable energy. The Chief Executive of Tamkeen, Hussain Mohammed Rajab said they will support local production industries by financially backing institutions in the payment of wages for Bahraini workers. This is on top of providing incubators for SMEs to encourage innovation.
What is blue hydrogen?
Blue hydrogen is when natural gas is split into hydrogen and CO2 either by Steam Methane Reforming (SMR) or Auto Thermal Reforming (ATR), but the CO2 is captured and then stored. As the greenhouse gasses are captured, this mitigates the environmental impacts on the planet.
What is green hydrogen used for?
Green hydrogen is hydrogen that is produced using renewable energy through electrolysis. This method uses an electrical current to separate hydrogen from oxygen in the water.
One use is in the chemical industry for manufacturing ammonia and fertilisers. While its second main use is in the petrochemical industry to produce petroleum products.
Unified e-Platform for investors on the way
The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism said the government is looking forward to developing a unified electronic system for investors. “This is part of a strategy to improve investors’ experience by facilitating procedures,” said Zayed bin Rashid Alzayani, adding that the government is re-evaluating current procedures to launch the platform.
“Works are also progressing to ease procedures for acquiring licenses and providing services through relationship management to customise solutions for various encountered issues,” said the minister.
Professional training for citizens
The new Industrial strategy for 2022 to 2026 focuses on providing professional training to citizens as part of the Economic Recovery Plan.
“This calls for creating various educational and vocational training opportunities in the field,” said Zayed bin Rashid Alzayani. The minister further said that these programmes would encourage companies to hire more nationals.
“It would also encourage factories to set up internship programmes for technical and vocational education graduates,” the minister added. Tamkeen will be organising various training programmes in cooperation with educational institutions. This will include professional global certifications and internship opportunities.
Revision of legislation
The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism said plans are also on the anvil to revise legislation as part of the new Industrial Sector Strategy. “Bahrain will do this through implementing joint GCC guidelines,” Zayed bin Rashid Alzayani said.
“This includes amending local laws to incorporate precision industries, as well as setting up specific urban planning classifications dedicated to industrial areas.”
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