Despite being one of the world’s largest oil exporters, Saudi Arabia is committing to invest in low-carbon energy sources — it aims to boost the share of renewable energy in its mix to 50%, while the other 50% will rely on natural gas rather than oil.

Recently, Saudi Arabia has announced it will spend approximately $270 billion on low-carbon energy projects by 2030, Abdulaziz bin Salman, the kingdom’s energy minister, said in a statement. 

“We are determined to be the leading exporter of hydrogen, as well as to provide clean hydrogen for local uses in heavy industries to produce green products such as green steel, green aluminum, fertilizers, and others at competitive prices,” bin Salman recently said at the in-Kingdom Total Value Add Forum and Exhibition. 

The kingdom aims to be an electricity exporter and expand the country’s transmission and distribution network.

The announcement reinforces the kingdom’s commitments at COP27, where it announced plans to achieve emissions reductions via the Saudi Green Initiative. This initiative aims to reduce emissions by more than 270 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2030 using a circular carbon economy approach, along with other industries.