As strategic partners of the MENA region’s first Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) Forum, the Gulf Organisation for Research and Development (GORD) and the Global Carbon Council (GCC) successfully concluded the event with over 500 experts and policymakers.  

Organised by Oman-based Birba Energy and held under the patronage of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, the CCUS Forum was held in Doha from 29 to 31 May

With a line-up of global speakers, masterclasses and a buzzing networking hub, the forum brought together delegates and visitors from different countries, including representatives of governments, industries and leading climate and technology experts.

The forum provided a platform for dialogue, knowledge sharing and the fostering of strategies to drive the global transition to a low-carbon future.

The event showcased technologies that are being developed to capture and remove CO2 from the atmosphere, and aimed to create commercial markets for utilising the captured CO2 and advance its permanent storage via geological sequestration.

Turning point

Addressing the audience during the opening ceremony, Dr Yousef Alhorr, Founding Chairman of GORD and GCC, said the event marks a turning point in their collective efforts to address the pressing climate challenges faced by the region and the world.

He said that an energy transition supported by CCUS will enable global economies to diversify their energy mix, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to the global transition towards a low-carbon economy, in alignment with the Paris Agreement.

The forum hosted sessions, masterclasses and even facilitated a field tour of TechnoHub, GORD’s RDI facility inside Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP).

Incentives for CCS projects

Dr Alhorr also talked about the GCC’s endorsement of the CCUS Forum, which he said is motivated by their commitment to the region’s energy transition and low-carbon development. He said they take immense pride in being the first and only international carbon credit programme rooted in the Global South.

As part of their dedication to the forum theme, Dr Alhorr announced the launch of GCC’s upcoming methodology for CCS projects, inviting participants to engage in their public consultations for the methodology before its final publication. The unique methodology stands out as one of the very few global initiatives that incentivize CCS projects through carbon credit issuance.

Considering the significant number of carbon capture and storage projects taking place worldwide, we believe this methodology has the potential to save millions of tonnes of carbon emissions.

In the long run, the CCS methodology will amplify the positive impact of approximately 1,500 climate mitigation projects already submitted to the GCC from 45 countries. Through these GHG reduction projects, GCC is expected to generate more than 2 billion carbon credits in the next eight to 10 years.

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