World leaders convened for the COP26 summit with urgent calls to accelerate action towards climate change. One of the most ambitious national pledges at the conference in Glasgow was made by Bahrain, with the GCC country announcing plans to reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent over the next 15 years.

 

Speaking at the summit in Glasgow, His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, said the 2035 target includes quadrupling the area of Bahrain's mangroves, doubling tree coverage and investing in sustainable technologies.

 

The COP26 announcement was the culmination of long-term efforts by Bahrain to forge a sustainable future. In November 2014, the country established the Sustainable Energy Unit (SEU), a joint initiative between the Office of the Minister of Electricity and Water Affairs and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The SEU aimed to create a cohesive and sustainable energy policy and promote renewable energy and energy efficiency in Bahrain. 

 

The SEU developed the National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP), representing the Kingdom's efforts to deliver the sustainable energy transition envisioned in the Economic Vision 2030. The plan sets a national renewable energy target of 5% by 2025 and 10% by 2035. The proposed renewable energy mix consists of solar, wind and waste to energy technologies.

 

Amidst these ambitious climate plans, the pivotal role of information and communication technologies (ICT) in supporting the transition to a sustainable future cannot be overstated. In particular, ICT plays a critical role in three areas: accelerating the transition to cleaner power, supporting zero-emission vehicles, and raising climate ambitions through scientific innovation. 

 

Further, breakthroughs in ICT are helping to protect the environment indirectly. For example, 5G networks are optimised to transmit data at a fraction of the energy consumption per bit of 4G, leading to enormous climate gains when set against the copious amounts of data transmitted through modern mobile networks daily. Leaders at COP26 were vocal that a collaborative and multi-disciplinary approach is required for research to ensure that a diverse range of technology and climate solutions are affordable, available, and accessible to all.

 

To deliver on these sustainability goals, we need to build electric systems based on new power sources, particularly solar. With some of the world's longest sunlight hours, there are great opportunities for large-scale deployment of PV and energy storage systems in Bahrain.  

 

Combining digital and power electronics technology using AI, cloud, and big data provides a pathway to low carbon solutions for nearly all sectors. By continuing to develop the capabilities and skills to use these technologies at scale, Bahrain will find itself well on its way to achieving its sweeping campaign to tackle climate change and reduce carbon emissions. 

 

Offering clean energy solutions is one of several priorities that Huawei has in Bahrain over the coming years. Founded earlier this year, Huawei Digital Power combines digital and power electronics technology to provide low carbon solutions to end-users that are secure, simplified, and green. Using AI, cloud, and big data will facilitate more efficient operation and maintenance so that enterprises can provide clean and stable power to society. If we put 5G and digital power together, as one example, we can envision a future where we can build smart and integrated energy solutions easier and at lower costs.  -TradeArabia News Service