Dubai’s Sustainable Future Takes Shape with DEWA’s Green Hydrogen Project

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) achieved a major milestone in its pioneering Green Hydrogen project, producing over 100 tonnes of green hydrogen since its launch in May 2021. This initiative, the first of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa, showcased Dubai’s leadership in renewable energy innovation.

The project had already generated more than 1.15 GWh of clean electricity through a hydrogen gas engine, successfully reducing over 515 tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Additionally, 11 tonnes of hydrogen were supplied to ENOC to fuel hydrogen vehicles at Expo 2020 Dubai’s Service Station of the Future and to power diverse industrial applications.

Developed in collaboration with Siemens Energy and Expo 2020 Dubai, the facility produced around 20 kilograms of hydrogen per hour using solar power, with storage capacity for up to 12 hours of production. This enabled nighttime power generation through a hydrogen gas motor, delivering approximately 300 kW of clean electricity.

The initiative reinforced Dubai’s progress toward its Clean Energy Strategy 2050, the Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050, and the Green Mobility Strategy 2030. By setting benchmarks in hydrogen competitiveness and clean energy transition, DEWA positioned Dubai as a regional and global leader in sustainable innovation.

Producing 100+ tonnes of green hydrogen since 2021, generating 1.15 GWh of clean electricity, and delivering 11 tonnes to ENOC for hydrogen-vehicle fuelling represents genuine operational scale for what began as an R&D-focused pilot. First-of-a-kind MENA facilities typically face steep learning-curve challenges; DEWA's ability to translate technology into consistent output signals mature project execution capability.

The Siemens Energy partnership and Expo 2020 anchoring provided both technical validation and initial demand signal. 20 kg/hour production with 12-hour storage capability enables the nighttime hydrogen-gas-motor electricity generation that demonstrates renewable-hydrogen's role as an energy-storage vector, not just a mobility fuel. This dual-use capability is strategically important for scaling economics.

For hydrogen producers, industrial off-takers, financial institutions supporting hydrogen investment and their supply-chain partners across the Gulf, Cognitud's energy transition, climate action and market intelligence teams help clients evaluate green-hydrogen investment opportunities, structure sustainability-linked commercial arrangements, and prepare disclosures aligned with ISSB, CDP and jurisdictional hydrogen frameworks that increasingly determine access to sustainable-finance for large-scale hydrogen deployment.