Publications

Saudi Arabia’s Potential to Further Hydrogen Use in the Maritime Sector

Nora Nezamuddin, Rami Shabaneh, Ahm Mehbub Anwar

The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in Glasgow focussed on advancing low-carbon fuels to reach emissions abatement targets. The conference also reaffirmed the goals of the Paris Agreement: to secure global net-zero emissions by mid-century and limit the…

Nezamuddin, Nora

Shabaneh, Rami

Anwar, Ahm Mehbub

Fostering Net-Zero Transition Pathways: The Role of Clean Hydrogen

Salaheddine Soummane, Rami Shabaneh

In early 2022, 80 countries (including Saudi Arabia), representing around 74% of global greenhouse gas emissions, pledged to reach net-zero emissions (NZE) in the coming decades. Achieving these ambitious climate policy objectives requires shifting the energy mix toward existing and…

Soummane, Salaheddine

Shabaneh, Rami

Moving Saudi Arabia’s Role in the Global Methane Pledge Forward

Rami Shabaneh, Bertrand Rioux, Fahad Bin Haji

In our previous Instant Insight, The Global Methane Pledge: What It Means for the Oil and Gas Industry Post-COP26, we shed light on the increased momentum behind the issue of methane emissions and how it is taking center stage in…

Shabaneh, Rami

Rioux, Bertrand

Fahad Bin Haji

How Realistic Is Hydrogen for Electrification?

Shahid Hasan, Rami Shabaneh

Hydrogen has gained considerable global support in the energy policy discourse on how to meet decarbonization targets. Due to its clean-burning properties and versatility, hydrogen is being examined as an alternative fuel source to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in…

Hasan, Shahid

Shabaneh, Rami

The Economics and Resource Potential of Hydrogen Production in Saudi Arabia

Shahid Hasan, Rami Shabaneh

Energy transition discussions, policymakers are increasingly viewing hydrogen as a preferred emissions-free substitute for oil, natural gas and coal in hard-to-abate sectors. However, hydrogen is not a primary energy source but rather is a carrier of energy. Many factors, including…

Hasan, Shahid

Shabaneh, Rami

The Global Methane Pledge: What It Means for the Oil and Gas Industry Post-COP26

Rami Shabaneh

After two weeks of climate negotiations in Glasgow, the 2021 U.N. Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) concluded successfully. Representatives of nearly 200 nations agreed to well over 50 decisions (some of which have been pending since COP24), keeping…

Shabaneh, Rami

Saudi Arabia’s Clean Hydrogen Ambitions: Opportunities and Challenges

Jan Frederik Braun, Rami Shabaneh

Saudi Arabia is a prime example of a country with an immense potential for clean hydrogen, i.e., hydrogen derived from a production process in which carbon emissions into the atmosphere are avoided, mitigated, or captured and stored.  Fully leveraging clean hydrogen to…

Braun, Jan Frederik

Shabaneh, Rami

Economic Analysis of Gas Pipeline Trade Cooperation: A GCC case study

Bertrand Rioux, Rami Shabaneh, Steve Griffiths

Natural gas development across the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) — including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain —has become a priority for achieving long-term energy security and for supporting economic…

Rioux, Bertrand

Shabaneh, Rami

Griffiths, Steve

Can Oil Refiners Adjust to a Greater Supply of Shale Oil?

Walid Matar, Rami Shabaneh

The advent of American shale oil and its prospects for continued production growth have raised concerns about whether oil refineries can handle the increasingly lighter crude oil supply. To provide a perspective on this issue, we run a global oil…

Matar, Walid

Shabaneh, Rami

World’s First Blue Ammonia Shipment Signals Prospective New Low-Carbon Energy Trade for Saudi Arabia

Rami Shabaneh, Majed A. Al Suwailem, Jitendra Roychoudhury

On September 27, 2020, Saudi Aramco successfully exported the world’s first shipment of carbon-neutral ammonia to Japan, helping to fuel the nascent Japanese hydrogen economy. This pilot shipment of 40 tonnes is an important realization of the hydrogen economy for…

Shabaneh, Rami

Al Suwailem, Majed A.

Roychoudhury, Jitendra

Adaptive Policy to Leverage Hydrogen in The Energy Transition

T20

Hydrogen is a key enabling vector of the energy transition. Multiple studies have demonstrated the potential of hydrogen to reduce carbon emissions and serve as a new energy medium in industries where electricity cannot be easily used. Along with continued…

Maxime Schenckery, Carlo Andrea Bollino, Alena Fargere, Rami Shabaneh, Yena Chae, James G. Carton, Bartlomiej Kolodziejczyk

Can Cooperation Enhance Natural Gas Utilization in the GCC?

Rami Shabaneh, Bertrand Rioux, Steve Griffiths

The last decade saw dramatic changes in the energy sector, including the shale oil and gas boom in the United States (U.S.), a commodity down-cycle, and heightened awareness of the global climate challenge. In response, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)…

Shabaneh, Rami

Rioux, Bertrand

Griffiths, Steve

Viability of Seasonal Natural Gas Storage in the Saudi Energy System

Science Direct

Walid Matar, Rami Shabaneh

The Prospect of Unconventional Gas Development in Saudi Arabia

Rami Shabaneh, Majed A. Al Suwailem

In February 2020, Saudi Aramco announced that it obtained regulatory approval to develop the Jafurah Basin, Saudi Arabia’s largest unconventional natural gas field (Figure 1). Situated east of the giant Ghawar oilfield, it contains 200 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of…

Shabaneh, Rami

Al Suwailem, Majed A.

Crude Oil and Refined Products

Rami Shabaneh, Abdullah Aldayel

The power sector in Saudi Arabia makes up just over half of the natural gas demand in the Kingdom, followed by the industrial sector and non-energy use as a feedstock for petrochemicals.

Shabaneh, Rami

Aldayel, Abdullah

Fuel Mix for Power Generation and Water Desalination in Saudi Arabia

Rami Shabaneh

Saudi Arabia’s fuel mix for power generation and water desalination comprises natural gas (57%) and a suite of liquid fuels (43%). Liquid fuels include crude oil, heavy fuel oil (HFO), and diesel.

Shabaneh, Rami

U.S.-Iran Tensions and the Waiver Renewal for Iranian Gas Exports to Iraq

Majed A. Al Suwailem, Saleh Al Muhanna, Rami Shabaneh

Following the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad on January 3, as a result of a United States (U.S.) airstrike, the Iraqi Parliament passed a resolution stating that it “must work to end the presence of any foreign…

Al Suwailem, Majed A.

Al Muhanna, Saleh

Shabaneh, Rami

Natural Gas Strategies for the Saudi Energy System

Walid Matar, Rami Shabaneh

Fuel prices in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have historically been below international market values. This has stimulated rapid growth in primary energy demand. The Kingdom’s natural gas demand has now outstripped its domestic production, forcing the government to impose…

Matar, Walid

Shabaneh, Rami

Implications of IMO 2020: The Potential for High Sulfur Fuel Oil Penetration in Saudi Arabia

Rami Shabaneh, Hamid M. Al Sadoon, Raed Mestneer

January 1, 2020 marks the enforcement of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) rule on limiting sulfur emissions from ships (IMO 2020). The rule mandates ships to reduce the sulfur content in their fuels to 0.5% from the current 3.5%. This…

Shabaneh, Rami

Al Sadoon, Hamid M.

Mestneer, Raed

India’s Push to Renegotiate Long-Term LNG Contracts

Kaushik Deb, Rami Shabaneh

On August 26, 2019, India’s petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that he would consider “a review of liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices under [India’s] long-term contracts”. However, Mr. Pradhan did not lay out a timeline for the review and reiterated…

Deb, Kaushik

Shabaneh, Rami