Journals Proceedings

Abstract

The United Arab Emirates is making notable progress in diversifying its economy through tourism, trade, and manufacturing. However, in the near term, oil, natural gas, and associated industries will continue to account for the majority of economic activity. Rising gas demand from power stations and industrial users such as petrochemical producers and steel manufacturers has turned the UAE into a net gas importer in the past decade, triggering multi-billion dollar investments into nuclear power and renewable energy. This paper looks into the patterns of energy production and consumption in the UAE in the context the changing nature of global energy markets. The paper analyzes current and proposed national energy initiatives, and assesses their impacts on the future of the country. The research considers a wide range of statistics from various sources to highlight the current situation and to predict future scenarios. The study also includes a SWOT analysis of the energy situation in the UAE and examines the impact of external factors. The demand for electricity in the UAE, which is almost exclusively generated from natural gas-fired power plants, is expected to rise at a rate of about 9 percent per annum through 2020.