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Minister of Energy His Excellency Dr. Abdul Hussain bin Ali Mirza inaugurated a ‘Renewable Energy for Sustainable Development’ Seminar on Sunday morning, February 15, 2015 at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Bahrain, organized by the University of Bahrain in cooperation with the National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) and Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) and supported by Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (GPIC). The event held from Sunday to Wednesday, February 15 to 18, was attended by a large number of specialists and academics from various universities, engineering and technical training institutes, energy professionals, investors and businessmen. The participation denoted NOGA’s idea of advancing renewable energy projects in accordance with government policies of the Kingdom of Bahrain to diversify energy sources and encourage sustainability.

In his opening speech, H.E. Dr. Mirza wished all participants and speakers a pleasant time in Bahrain. He asked participants to gain maximum benefit from the scientific papers and case studies discussed at the sessions. He praised the valuable role of global regulators and their efforts to bring about effective specialist programs being great supporting actors. He pointed out the positive role played by the Government of Bahrain, which had always been keen on attracting and hosting specialized energy sector events. He praised the prominent role of government agencies in promoting knowledge sharing between associated authorities through seminars, presentations and discussions on a variety of issues focussing on the latest developments in the field of renewable energy and sustainability, involving specialists of international speakers.

The Minister said the theme of the seminar - Renewable Energy for Sustainable Development’ - was important for the energy sector, which was working hard to meet the needs of future generations and encourage rational use of resources. He expressed happiness that the industrial world had woken up to the growing global concern about human and environment deterioration and its effects on economic and social development. The progress of any nation depended on how efficiently it used its natural resources. Energy intensive modern societies posed sustainability questions, prominent among them was the search for substitutes to fossil fuel, he said. Nations around the word, including developed nations, should take necessary actions to sustain the current standard of living and develop it further for the benefit of future generations, by diversifying our energy sources, mixing fossil fuel sources with renewable energy, so as to sustain energy and reduce emissions. Renewable energy resources have their advantages, but will never totally replace traditional fuel, even in non-oil producing countries. Global policies for sustainable development are falling in place, whether in the environmental or economic scene. 

He said the scope of renewable energy in the Middle East was high, and in Gulf countries, an abundance of solar energy was something that could be easily harvested. Some forms of renewable energy sources needed to be studied for feasibility, particularly wind energy. He pointed out that large scale wind energy farms have been successfully employed worldwide during the past two decades, while some countries were even experimenting with geothermal and tidal wave.

According to the Minister, Bahrain has made environment sustainability an important national priority this year, in pursuit to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets. Considering the fact that the country had the potential to undertake energy efficiency initiatives to extend the life of oil and gas reserves and enable centralized energy databanks that provided complete standardized information for different economic sectors. Though the renewable energy business is well established in many countries around the globe, it is in the infant stage in this part of the world, which presented a great investment opportunity for this emerging industry and for smaller enterprises in the field, which helped job creation for local youth.

He said the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and NOGA, the organization responsible for all petroleum and gas related issues in Bahrain, had signed an cooperation agreement in 2011 to set up a National Energy Conservation and Planning Centre which will serve as the country’s main reference source for all energy data, providing analysis and planning, and enabling informed decision making. This, in a time when Bahrain’s electricity demand is growing by approximately 7% annually.

The Minister said that sustainable energy was one of the main sources in the development of a comprehensible and sustainable energy policy that work towards consolidating all energy sector institutions in Bahrain and encourage regular investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy. He expressed his happiness that Bahrain was on its way to achieving the strategic goal of securing its energy resources and achieving long term national prosperity. He said this showed the government’s contribution towards various global issues, particularly those related to energy use and resource efficiency.

The Minister said Bahrain has proved its commitment to pursuing the goal of including renewable energy in it energy mix with a pilot 5 MW Solar Energy project, with solar systems at Awali, Bapco Refinery and University of Bahrain. Another 5 MW pilot was being considered by EWA, which was keen on setting up wind turbines to harvest wind energy. Most GCC countries are undertaking renewable energy projects, which will change the region’s future, and move towards more sustainable societies.

In conclusion, H. E. Dr. Mirza expressed his gratitude and appreciation to Dr. Ebrahim Janahi, the UoB Chairman and the technical committee members from UoB, NOGA and EWA for the good event organization and selection of scientific papers which provided a high level of knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences in a highly professional and scientific manner. He thanked Bapco and GPIC for supporting the event. He wished all participants from both inside and outside Bahrain, great sessions and asked them to take advantage of the scientific papers presented and views shared by the knowledgeable speakers and from the recommendations made, which would contribute to the achievement of the nation’s desired strategic energy objectives.