Dietmar Siersdorfer is the managing director of Siemens Energy Middle East
April 11, 2022
No matter what the world throws at it, the Middle East will continue to play an increasingly essential role in providing energy security and price stability for the world, particularly amid today’s volatile global geopolitics. But the region also has huge potential to facilitate an accelerated transition to greener energy.
As the geopolitical impacts of the war in Ukraine spread, energy supply and price volatility crises are affecting economies worldwide. They are highlighting the need for greater resilience in global supply. For example, in 2021, Germany imported more than 63 per cent percent of its energy. About 98 per cent of oil consumed in the country is imported. Most of its oil and gas imports come from Russia. As a result, Berlin now plans to spend more than $217 billion on fostering renewable sources to improve its energy security and wean itself off foreign suppliers.
This drastic change offers three important lessons for other countries that are trying to increase their energy sovereignty. The first is the need to have more diversity in national energy systems. The second is the importance of infrastructure and storage facilities, many of which will have to be expanded massively in a number of countries. The third is the faster speed at which governments need to enact measures to bring about the energy transition.
It is not only the war in Ukraine that is massively changing the energy sector. We’ve also got to tackle the climate crisis by switching to cleaner sources. On a practical level, more than just cutting-edge innovation, the next generation of energy supplies will also need to be affordable and reliable for all.
Regionally, countries such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are already some of the world’s most stable and leading energy suppliers. They are also at the forefront of the energy transition, as a result of their heavy investment in renewables and the energy technologies of the future, such as hydrogen.
Although global renewable energies must be expanded much faster, the transition cannot happen overnight. As the cleanest burning and fastest-growing fossil fuel, natural gas will be a key component of any future switch. It is a bridge fuel that will be needed in many areas, as even cleaner fuels are researched and rolled out.
The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is located about 50 kilometres south of Dubai. AP
Masdar, the Abu Dhabi clean energy company, owns a one-fifth stake in London Array, the offshore wind farm in the Thames estuary. Chris Ratcliffe / Bloomberg News
A hydro plant in Himachal Pradesh, India. Photo: Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA)
The Geothermal Pilot Project drills 4km beneath Masdar City in search of boiling temperatures to generate electricity and fuel the city's cooling system. Nicole Hill /The National
A hydroelectric motor at a tidal farm in the harbour of Brest, in western France. AFP
Climate change isn't going away. Record carbon dioxide emissions worldwide were documented last year. Despite the war, certain states will require gas for a long time to come. Countries, primarily in Europe, will need to diversify the supply of it and make greater use of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Gas fuelled 24 per cent of total global power generation in 2020 and will play a key role in displacing coal-fired generation until the 2030s.
Middle Eastern countries will play a vital role in ensuring this energy supply, and by investing in modern, state-of-the-art technologies they will make sure that the energy produced and exported will be the cleanest possible. The Gulf states are an important energy region today, and they will continue to be so in the future, even beyond the days of carbon sources. As the region leverages its vast oil, gas, chemicals and energy trading expertise, along with the development of less costly electricity from renewables and infrastructure to export molecules, it will most likely become one of the key green energy-exporting regions in the future.
But in the meantime, where electricity cannot be covered by renewables, highly efficient power plants based on natural gas can help halve carbon dioxide emissions compared to coal-fired power plants. Converting gas turbines to green hydrogen would facilitate climate-neutral operations in the future. Today, our gas turbines tested in our new Zero Emission Hydrogen Turbine Centre are ready to burn up to 75 per cent hydrogen in the fuel mix. We will hit 100 per cent by 2030.
All this will only work if infrastructure and storage facilities are massively expanded and adapted to cope with these new conditions: from modern high-voltage direct-current transmission grids and high-performance pipelines, to LNG terminals and extensive gas storage facilities.
The growing share of renewable energies also requires a fundamental strengthening of the existing power grid.
As we move towards increased reliance on renewable energy, the storage of that energy for when the sun doesn’t shine and the wind doesn’t blow will be crucial. We also need to upgrade grids to make sure they can handle the new strains that will be put on them, to ensure stability and resilience. New fuels make little difference if power surges cut them off. With this in place, Middle Eastern countries can further cement their status as reliable suppliers and partners for the world.
Time is limited. Investments, approval and permits have long timescales. Governments must look responsibly at the risk-reward profiles to remove obstacles and regulations that can prevent promising ventures from moving forward. One way this can be done is by direct investment and loan programmes. Sustainability must be given a price and floated on markets; only then will it be attractive to invest in. Investment in innovation and progressive policies to reduce carbon emissions will also be required to ensure that much-needed progress is made.
Ambitious targets by governments are at the core of change. We must all be prepared to adapt. If we are, we can make tomorrow different, today.
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
'Nightmare Alley'
Director:Guillermo del Toro
Stars:Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara
Rating: 3/5
How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Starring Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay, Daniel Mays
4.5/5
If you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Chicago from Dh5,215 return including taxes.
The hotels
Recommended hotels include the Intercontinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, located in an iconic skyscraper complete with a 1929 Olympic-size swimming pool from US$299 (Dh1,100) per night including taxes, and the Omni Chicago Hotel, an excellent value downtown address with elegant art deco furnishings and an excellent in-house restaurant. Rooms from US$239 (Dh877) per night including taxes.
The bio:
Favourite holiday destination: I really enjoyed Sri Lanka and Vietnam but my dream destination is the Maldives.
Favourite food: My mum’s Chinese cooking.
Favourite film: Robocop, followed by The Terminator.
Hobbies: Off-roading, scuba diving, playing squash and going to the gym.
