Mena Faces Energy Storage Troubles

Bracewell’s Tom Swarbrick recently spoke with Hydrogen Economist about the low deployment of battery storage solutions in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region.

“The Middle East is at the vanguard of renewable energy development, with the largest solar projects in the world and a number of jurisdictions looking seriously at onshore wind capacity,” said Swarbrick. Despite that, Swarbrick added that the deployment of battery storage systems is “still really low.”

The Mena region has seen a proliferation of renewable energy projects—both to decarbonize domestic energy use and for dedicated green hydrogen production—but the deployment of storage solutions remains on the back burner.

A particular challenge is the region’s heat and humidity. “Performance of batteries is reduced significantly in these extremes of weather,” Swarbrick said. This requires additional investment in cooling systems to prevent overheating, which he added “makes utility-scale deployment uneconomical.”

A lack of battery storage capacity could present a potential hurdle for future green hydrogen production, particularly if Mena projects aim to produce 100pc renewables-derived hydrogen for export to Europe.

Click here to read more from Hydrogen Economist (subscription required).