Saudi Arabia pushing the sustainability needle forward at G20 Riyadh Summit

Saudi Arabia remains committed to developing more sustainable energy systems that will safeguard the planet, said presenters speaking at the G20 Riyadh Summit on Wednesday.

Speaking at the G20 Riyadh Summit, Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman Al-Saud, the Minister of Energy said the Kingdom is committed to the 4Rs – reduce, reuse, recycle, and renew – of the circular economy.

“This is a concept all countries can gather around,” the energy minister said. “What’s fundamentally important is the limiting of emissions.”

The minister said that Saudi Arabia will “be creating more demand for hydrocarbon, but for that to grow, we have to be environmentally friendly.”

Panelists also spoke about various ways the Kingdom is seeking to stay ahead of the curve in sustainability, including by designing a framework for the Circular Carbon Economy National Program (CCE-NP) that aims to promote socio-economic growth and tackle climate change.

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Presenters gave examples of how to create a more sustainable world. One of which would be a closed-loop shipping system where boxes and packaging are reused; another would be switching from wooden shipping pallets to plastic pallets that can be recycled and can be used up to 40 times more than their wooden counterparts.

“Saudi Arabia is only at the beginning of its sustainability journey,” one presenter said at the panel titled “Safeguarding our Planet through more sustainable energy systems.”

Through engaging a diverse set of stakeholders across government ministries, the Kingdom is working to develop a sector-wide digital transformation strategy that would enable value creation through data and technologies.

“We’re also looking at how we can leverage data, analytics and artificial intelligence to disrupt and reinvent traditional processes,” the presenter said.

Speaking yesterday, Saudi Aramco’s chief technology officer said the world’s energy supply has been “a force for good” and may be reliable and affordable, but it must also be sustainable.

As part of its green campaign, Saudi Arabia has committed to planting 10 million trees by the end of the April 2021.

Sustainability and environmental protections are main aspects of the Kingdom’s ambitious Vision 2030 plan.

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