Zukünftige Energie- und Industriesysteme
Um das vom Weltklimarat (IPCC) geforderte 2°C-Ziel einhalten zu können, ist eine Reduktion der globalen CO2-Emissionen um 80% bis 2050 gegenüber dem Stand von 1990 zwingend notwendig. Hierbei wird auch solarthermischen Kraftwerken eine immer größere Bedeutung beigemessen. Im BLUE Map-Szenario der Internationalen Energieagentur (IEA), das von einer CO2-Reduktion um 50% bis 2050 gegenüber 2005 ausgeht, müssen im Jahr 2050 ca. 11% (4.754 TWh) des weltweiten Strombedarfs durch Sonnenenergie gedeckt werden (IEA 2008). Neben Photovoltaik sollen solarthermische Kraftwerke (Concentrated Solar Power, CSP) etwa 46% (ca. 2.200 TWh) der prognostizierten Menge an Solarstrom erzeugen. Im Energy[R]evolution Szenario von Greenpeace International und EREC (European Renewable Energy Council) aus dem Jahr 2008 werden rund 6.000 TWh an CSP-Strom im Jahr 2050 angenommen (bei einer installierten Leistung von 801 GW), während andere Studien bis zu 1.000 GW installierter Leistung in 2050 betrachten (Viebahn et al. 2010). Die DESERTEC-Initiative gibt ein Ziel von 5.000 GW installierter Leistung im Jahr 2050 vor.
Der Export von CSP-Technologien in die "Sunbelt"-Regionen bietet große Chancen für deutsche Anlagenbauer. So sind u.a. Schott Solar, die Ferrostaal Group mit ihrem Geschäftssegment "Solar Energy", Flagsol, die Solar Power Group, Solar Millenium und Fichtner Solar auf dem Gebiet CSP aktiv. Schott Solar (Receiver) und Flabeg (Spiegel) haben eine weltweit führende Markstellung inne. Große deutsche Energieversorger und Anlagenbauer wie E.On, RWE und Siemens gehören zum Industriekonsortium der Desertec Industrial Initiative, die den Ausbau von CSP in der MENA-Region vorantreiben will. Die Initiative wurde von der Münchener Rück angestoßen.
In diesem Artikel wird dargestellt, welche Aktivitäten deutsche Unternehmen entlang der Wertschöpfungskette bislang aufweisen und wie ihre Marktstellung im Vergleich zu führenden internationalen Unternehmen zu bewerten ist. Anschließend wird auf Basis von vorliegenden Energieszenarien ermittelt, welche messbaren ökonomischen Effekte für deutsche Unternehmen, z.B. zusätzliche Wertschöpfung und die Schaffung neuer Arbeitsplätze, aus den genannen Potentialen resultieren. Die Ergebnisse basieren auf einer Studie des Wuppertal Instituts, die im Auftrag von Greenpeace Deutschland und der DESERTEC Foundation erstellt wurde.
Eine oft kontrovers diskutierte Frage ist, ob eine massive Dämmung von Häusern in der Gesamtbilanz nicht mehr Ressourcenverbrauch und Emissionen verursacht, als sie im Endeffekt einspart. Zur Untersuchung dieser Frage wurde nun erstmals eine trade-off Analyse durchgeführt. Hierzu wurde ein bottom-up Wirkungsanalyse-Modell entwickelt, dessen Kern ein Emissions- und Energiemodell für den Haushaltssektor bildet, gekoppelt mit einem Ökobilanzierungs-Tool. Den Rahmen für beide Modelle bilden Energieszenarien bis 2050, die für jede Dekade Sanierungsraten und Energiemixe vorgeben. Damit können "reine" Energieszenarien um ressourcenpolitische Analysen erweitert und die Auswirkungen verschiedener Dämmstrategien ermittelt werden.
Das zentrale Ergebnis der Modellierung ist, dass zusätzliche Aufwendungen für Dämmstoffe (untersucht wurden extrudierter Polystyrolhartschaum XPS und Zellulose) sowohl ressourcen- als auch emissionsseitig in fast allen Umweltwirkungskategorien durch erhebliche Einsparungen bei der Gebäudebeheizung überkompensiert werden. Im Wesentlichen sind keine Trade-offs erkennbar und der prozentuale Beitrag der Dämmstoffe an den Umweltwirkungsindikatoren ist gering. Relevant ist dagegen die Wahl des Treibmittels bei den aufgeschäumten XPS-Dämmstoffen: Gegenüber dem in Deutschland verwendeten XPS, das weitgehend mit CO2 aufgeschäumt wird, führt ein Dämmstoff, der hohe Anteile an Fluorkohlenwasserstoffen aufweist, zu einem hohen Trade-off bezüglich der Wirkungskategorie "stratosphärischer Ozonabbau" und zu einer erkennbaren, jedoch nicht so deutlichen Wirkung auf das Treibhaus-Potenzial. Eine Sensitivitätsanalyse mit dem alternativen Dämmmaterial Zellulose zeigt, dass sich die an sich schon geringen Anteile der Dämmstoffe an den Umweltwirkungsindikatoren weiter verringern. Hinsichtlich der Materialintensität sind XPS- und Zellulose-Dämmung jedoch mit vergleichbaren Auswirkungen verbunden.
Zusammenfassend lässt sich festhalten, dass für beide Materialien ambitionierte Dämmstoffstrategien im Hinblick auf alle in dieser Studie analysierten Faktoren einen wesentlichen Beitrag sowohl zu Materialeffizienz- als auch zu Emissionsminderungszielen leisten können.
Electricity generation requires water. With the global demand for electricity expected to increase significantly in the coming decades, the water demand in the power sector is also expected to rise. However, due to the ongoing global energy transition, the future structure of the power supply - and hence future water demand for power generation - is subject to high levels of uncertainty, because the volume of water required for electricity generation varies significantly depending on both the generation technology and the cooling system. This study shows the implications of ambitious decarbonization strategies for the direct water demand for electricity generation. To this end, water demand scenarios for the electricity sector are developed based on selected global energy scenario studies to systematically analyze the impact up to 2040. The results show that different decarbonization strategies for the electricity sector can lead to a huge variation in water needs. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) does not necessarily lead to a reduction in water demand. These findings emphasize the need to take into account not only GHG emission reductions, but also such aspects as water requirements of future energy systems, both at the regional and global levels, in order to achieve a sustainable energy transition.
The German Energiewende is a deliberate transformation of an established industrial economy towards a nearly CO2-free energy system accompanied by a phase out of nuclear energy. Its governance requires knowledge on how to steer the transition from the existing status quo to the target situation (transformation knowledge). The energy system is, however, a complex socio-technical system whose dynamics are influenced by behavioural and institutional aspects, which are badly represented by the dominant techno-economic scenario studies. In this paper, we therefore investigate and identify characteristics of model studies that make agent-based modelling supportive for the generation of transformation knowledge for the Energiewende. This is done by reflecting on the experiences gained from four different applications of agent-based models. In particular, we analyse whether the studies have improved our understanding of policies' impacts on the energy system, whether the knowledge derived is useful for practitioners, how valid understanding derived by the studies is, and whether the insights can be used beyond the initial case-studies. We conclude that agent-based modelling has a high potential to generate transformation knowledge, but that the design of projects in which the models are developed and used is of major importance to reap this potential. Well-informed and goal-oriented stakeholder involvement and a strong collaboration between data collection and model development are crucial.
A significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions will be necessary in the coming decades to enable the global community to avoid the most dangerous consequences of man-made global warming. This fact is reflected in Germany's 7th Federal Energy Research Program (EFP), which was adopted in 2018. Direct Air Capture (DAC) technologies used to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere comprise one way to achieve these reductions in greenhouse gases. DAC has been identified as a technology (group) for which there are still major technology gaps. The intention of this article is to explore the potential role of DAC for the EFP by using a multi-dimensional analysis showing the technology's possible contributions to the German government's energy and climate policy goals and to German industry's global reputation in the field of modern energy technologies, as well as the possibilities of integrating DAC into the existing energy system. The results show that the future role of DAC is affected by a variety of uncertainty factors. The technology is still in an early stage of development and has yet to prove its large-scale technical feasibility, as well as its economic viability. The results of the multi-dimensional evaluation, as well as the need for further technological development, integrated assessment, and systems-level analyses, justify the inclusion of DAC technology in national energy research programs like the EFP.
Concentrated solar power (CSP) plants are one of several renewable energy technologies with significant potential to meet a part of future energy demand. An integrated technology assessment shows that CSP plants could play a promising role in Africa and Europe, helping to reach ambitious climate protection goals. Based on the analysis of driving forces and barriers, at first three future envisaged technology scenarios are developed. Depending on the underlying assumptions, an installed capacity of 120 GWel, 405 GWel or even 1,000 GWel could be reached globally in 2050. In the latter case, CSP would then meet 13–15% of global electricity demand. Depending on these scenarios, cost reduction curves for North Africa and Europe are derived. The cost assessment conducted for two virtual sites in Algeria and in Spain shows a long-term reduction of electricity generating costs to figures between 4 and 6 ct/kWhel in 2050. The paper concludes with an ecological analysis based on life cycle assessment. Although the greenhouse gas emissions of current (solar only operated) CSP systems show a good performance (31 g CO2-equivalents/kWhel) compared with advanced fossil-fired systems (130–900 CO2-eq./kWhel), they could further be reduced to 18 g CO2-eq./kWhel in 2050, including transmission from North Africa to Europe.
Im Herbst 2018 wird das neue Energieforschungsprogramm (EFP) der Bundesregierung verabschiedet. Das Forschungsprojekt "Technologien für die Energiewende", kurz TF_Energiewende, hat hierfür eine wesentliche wissenschaftliche Basis geliefert. Für 31 Technologiefelder, die mehrere Hundert Technologien umfassen, analysierten die Projektpartner das Innovations- und Marktpotenzial, bewerteten Chancen und Risiken sowie den möglichen Beitrag der Technologien zur Umsetzung der Energiewende und zeigten Forschungs- und Entwicklungsbedarf auf. Die nun veröffentlichten Ergebnisse dienen gleichzeitig als umfassendes Nachschlagewerk für Entscheider in Unternehmen, Forschungsabteilungen, Fördergeber und die interessierte Fachöffentlichkeit.
Many countries are increasingly investing in renewable energy technologies to meet growing energy demands and increase the security of their energy supply. This development is also evident in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, where renewable energy targets and policies have evolved rapidly in recent years. There is a steady increase in both the number of planned and implemented solar photovoltaic (PV) but also of solar thermal projects in form of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plants. Many of these installations are designed as large utility-scale systems. Despite the fact that these types of large-scale projects can have significant effects on local communities and their livelihoods, the existing research into the social impacts of such large-scale renewable energy infrastructures at local level is limited. However, assessing and managing these impacts is becoming increasingly important to reduce risks to both the affected communities and to the project and businesses activities. In order to provide more robust evidence on the local effects, this research study reviews the social impacts of large-scale renewable energy infrastructure in the MENA region based on a case study of the NOORo I CSP plant in Ouarzazate, Morocco. Data collected during two empirical field studies, in combination with expert interviews and secondary data analysis, provides detailed evidence on the type and significance of livelihood impacts of the NOORo I CSP plant. The analysis results in a consolidated list of 30 impacts and their significance levels for different stakeholder groups including farmers, young people, women, community representatives and owners of small and medium enterprises. The results show that, overall, the infrastructure development was received positively. The review also indicates that factors identified as having effects on the sustainability of local livelihoods are mainly related to information management and benefit distribution, rather than physical or material aspects.
For many years, carbon capture and storage (CCS) has been discussed as a technology that may make a significant contribution to achieving major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. At present, however, only two large-scale power plants capture a total of 2.4 Mt CO2/a. Several reasons are identified for this mismatch between expectations and realised deployment. Applying bibliographic coupling, the research front of CCS, understood to be published peer-reviewed papers, is explored to scrutinise whether the current research is sufficient to meet these problems. The analysis reveals that research is dominated by technical research (69%). Only 31% of papers address non-technical issues, particularly exploring public perception, policy, and regulation, providing a broader view on CCS implementation on the regional or national level, or using assessment frameworks. This shows that the research is advancing and attempting to meet the outlined problems, which are mainly non-technology related. In addition to strengthening this research, the proportion of papers that adopt a holistic approach may be increased in a bid to meet the challenges involved in transforming a complex energy system. It may also be useful to include a broad variety of stakeholders in research so as to provide a more resilient development of CCS deployment strategies.
Damit sich die weltweit zunehmend ambitionierten Klimaschutzziele erreichen lassen, müssen auch im Industriesektor weitgehende Emissionsreduktionen innerhalb weniger Jahrzehnte realisiert werden. Expertinnen und Experten sind sich einig, dass dies nicht ohne den Umstieg von fossilen auf erneuerbare Energieträger und Rohmaterialien - sogenannte Feedstocks - umsetzbar ist. Im Zuge der verstärkten Nutzung dieser grünen Energieträger ist denkbar, dass sich deren Verfügbarkeit und Kosten zu immer wichtigeren Standortfaktoren für die Produktion industrieller Güter entwickeln werden. Dies könnte dazu führen, dass zukünftig Standorte mit kostengünstiger Verfügbarkeit von erneuerbaren Energien attraktiver gegenüber anderen Standorten werden und es dann zu Standortverlagerungen kommt - insbesondere im Bereich der energieintensiven Industrie.
In dem vorliegenden Artikel greifen die Autoren diese möglichen Verlagerungen industrieller Produktion auf. In diesem Zusammenhang führen sie auch den Begriff "Renewables Pull" ein. Die in bestimmten Regionen der Welt kostengünstig und in großen Mengen verfügbaren erneuerbaren Energien könnten nach Ansicht der Autoren künftig eine Sogwirkung auslösen und bestimmte Teile der industriellen Produktion anziehen - auch Pull-Effekt genannt.
It is now widely recognized that effective communication and demand-side policies for alternative energy require sound knowledge of preferences and determinants of demand of the public and consumers. To date, public attitudes towards new transport technologies have been studied under very different conceptual frameworks. This paper gives an overview of the various conceptual frameworks and methodologies used, where four main approaches can be distinguished: general attitudinal surveys, risk perception studies, non-market economic valuation studies, and other approaches such as those based on semiotic theory. We then review the findings of the recent literature on acceptance, attitudes and preferences for hydrogen and fuelcell end-use technologies, focusing on vehicles. These studies are then contrasted with related research into alternative fuel vehicles. The paper finally discusses the main trends in research and avenues for further work in this field. We recommend, among other things, the use of approaches that build knowledge and familiarity with the technology prior to the exploration of attitudes, and the set up of studies that take a whole-systems perspective of hydrogen technologies and that look at hydrogen in the context of other competing clean technologies.
Prospects of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in India's power sector : an integrated assessment
(2014)
Objective: The aim of the present article is to conduct an integrated assessment in order to explore whether CCS could be a viable technological option for significantly reducing future CO2 emissions in India. Methods: In this paper, an integrated approach covering five assessment dimensions is chosen. However, each dimension is investigated using specific methods (graphical abstract).
Results: The most crucial precondition that must be met is a reliable storage capacity assessment based on site-specific geological data since only rough figures concerning the theoretical capacity exist at present. Our projection of different trends of coal-based power plant capacities up to 2050 ranges between 13 and 111 Gt of CO2 that may be captured from coal-fired power plants to be built by 2050. If very optimistic assumptions about the country's CO2 storage potential are applied, 75 Gt of CO2 could theoretically be stored as a result of matching these sources with suitable sinks. If a cautious approach is taken by considering the country's effective storage potential, only a fraction may potentially be sequestered. In practice, this potential will decrease further with the impact of technical, legal, economic and social acceptance factors. Further constraints may be the delayed commercial availability of CCS in India, a significant barrier to achieving the economic viability of CCS, an expected net maximum reduction rate of the power plant’s greenhouse gas emissions of 71-74%, an increase of most other environmental and social impacts, and a lack of governmental, industrial or societal CCS advocates.
Conclusion and practice implications: Several preconditions need to be fulfilled if CCS is to play a future role in reducing CO2 emissions in India, the most crucial one being to determine reliable storage capacity figures. In order to overcome these barriers, the industrialised world would need to make a stronger commitment in terms of CCS technology demonstration, cooperation and transfer to emerging economies like India. The integrated assessment might also be extended by a comparison with other low-carbon technology options to draw fully valid conclusions on the most suitable solution for a sustainable future energy supply in India.
Prospects of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in China's power sector : an integrated assessment
(2015)
Objective: The aim of the present article is to conduct an integrated assessment in order to explore whether CCS could be a viable technological option for significantly reducing future CO2 emissions in China. Methods: In this paper, an integrated approach covering five assessment dimensions is chosen. Each dimension is investigated using specific methods (graphical abstract). Results: The most crucial precondition that must be met is a reliable storage capacity assessment based on site-specific geological data. Our projection of different trends of coal-based power plant capacities up to 2050 ranges between 34 and 221 Gt of CO2 that may be captured from coal-fired power plants to be built by 2050. If very optimistic assumptions about the country’s CO2 storage potential are applied, 192 Gt of CO2 could theoretically be stored as a result of matching these sources with suitable sinks. If a cautious approach is taken, this figure falls to 29 Gt of CO2. In practice, this potential will decrease further with the impact of technical, legal, economic and social acceptance factors. Further constraints may be the delayed commercial availability of CCS in China; a significant barrier to achieving the economic viability of CCS due to a currently non-existing nation-wide CO2 pricing scheme that generates a sufficiently strong price signal; an expected life-cycle reduction rate of the power plant's greenhouse gas emissions of 59-60%; and an increase in most other negative environmental and social impacts. Conclusion and practice implications: Most experts expect a striking dominance of coal-fired power generation in the country's electricity sector, even if the recent trend towards a flattened deployment of coal capacity and reduced annual growth rates of coal-fired generation proves to be true in the future. In order to reduce fossil fuel-related CO2 emissions to a level that would be consistent with the long-term climate protection target of the international community to which China is increasingly committing itself, this option may require the introduction of CCS. However, a precondition for opting for CCS would be finding robust solutions to the constraints highlighted in this article. Furthermore, a comparison with other low-carbon technology options may be useful in drawing completely valid conclusions on the economic, ecological and social viability of CCS in a low-carbon policy environment. The assessment dimensions should be integrated into macro-economic optimisation models by combining qualitative with quantitative modelling, and the flexible operation of CCS power plants should be analysed in view of a possible role of CCS for balancing fluctuating renewable energies.
Wo werden zukünftig grüner Wasserstoff und synthetische Kraftstoffe produziert? Zu welchen Kosten können diese erzeugt werden? Und welchen Anteil hätte eine heimische Produktion daran? Die Ergebnisse der Studie MENA-Fuels zeigen, dass im Nahen Osten und Nordafrika langfristig sehr große kostengünstige Potenziale für grünen Strom, Wasserstoff und Synfuels bestehen. Die Berücksichtigung von Investitionsrisiken hat jedoch einen signifikanten Einfluss auf deren Kosten und damit auf die Wahl der potenziellen Exportländer.
Water availability plays an important role in the expansion planning of utility-scale solar power plants, especially in the arid regions of the Middle East and North Africa. Although these power plants usually account for only a small fraction of local water demand, competition for water resources between communities, farmers, companies, and power suppliers is already emerging and is likely to intensify in future. Despite this, to date there has been a lack of comprehensive studies analyzing interdependencies and potential conflicts between energy and water at local level. This study addresses this research gap and examines the linkages between water resources and energy technologies at local level based on a case study conducted in Ouarzazate, Morocco, where one of the largest solar power complexes in the world was recently completed. To better understand the challenges faced by the region in light of increased water demand and diminishing water supply, a mixed-method research design was applied to integrate the knowledge of local stakeholders through a series of workshops. In a first step, regional socio-economic water demand scenarios were developed and, in a second step, water saving measures to avoid critical development pathways were systematically evaluated using a participatory multi-criteria evaluation approach. The results are a set of water demand scenarios for the region and a preferential ranking of water saving measures that could be drawn upon to support decision-making relating to energy and water development in the region.
The main objective of this article is to evaluate CO2 mitigation potential and to calculate costs avoided by the use of different CO2 mitigation technologies in China's cement sector, namely energy efficiency improvements, use of alternative fuels, clinker substitution and carbon capture and storage (CCS). Three scenarios are designed based on the projection of cement output and technology development over the next 40 years (2010–2050). 2.5, 4.7 and 4.3 Gt tonnes of CO2 will be saved totally in basic scenario and two low carbon scenarios up to 2050. By comparing these technologies along the scenarios, it can be concluded that CO2 emissions can mainly be reduced by energy efficiency improvements and use of alternative fuels. Clinker substitution, which reduces the clinker-to-cement ratio as well as energy intensity, results in significant cost advantages. CCS, including post-combustion capture and oxy-fuel combustion capture, could play an important role in the capture of CO2 in the cement industry, and is expected to be in commercial use by 2030.
The study presents the results of an integrated assessment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the power plant sector in Germany, with special emphasis on the competition with renewable energy technologies. Assessment dimensions comprise technical, economic and environmental aspects, long-term scenario analysis, the role of stakeholders and public acceptance and regulatory issues. The results lead to the overall conclusion that there might not necessarily be a need to focus additionally on CCS in the power plant sector. Even in case of ambitious climate protection targets, current energy policy priorities (expansion of renewable energies and combined heat and power plants as well as enhanced energy productivity) result in a limited demand for CCS. In case that the large energy saving potential aimed for can only partly be implemented, the rising gap in CO2 reduction could only be closed by setting up a CCS-maximum strategy. In this case, up to 22% (41 GW) of the totally installed load in 2050 could be based on CCS. Assuming a more realistic scenario variant applying CCS to only 20 GW or lower would not be sufficient to reach the envisaged climate targets in the electricity sector. Furthermore, the growing public opposition against CO2 storage projects appears as a key barrier, supplemented by major uncertainties concerning the estimation of storage potentials, the long-term cost development as well as the environmental burdens which abound when applying a life-cycle approach. However, recently, alternative applications are being increasingly considered–that is the capture of CO2 at industrial point sources and biomass based energy production (electricity, heat and fuels) where assessment studies for exploring the potentials, limits and requirements for commercial use are missing so far. Globally, CCS at power plants might be an important climate protection technology: coal-consuming countries such as China and India are increasingly moving centre stage into the debate. Here, similar investigations on the development and the integration of both, CCS and renewable energies, into the individual energy system structures of such countries would be reasonable.
If the current energy policy priorities are retained, there may be no need to focus additionally on carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the power plant sector of Germany. This applies even in the case of ambitious climate protection targets, according to the results of the presented integrated assessment study. These cover a variety of aspects: Firstly, the technology is not expected to become available on a large scale in Germany before 2025. Secondly, if renewable energies and combined heat and power are expanded further and energy productivity is enhanced, there is likely to be only a limited demand for CCS power plants, as a scenario analysis of CCS deployment in Germany shows. Thirdly, cost analysis using the learning curve approach shows that the electricity generation costs of renewable electricity approach those of CCS power plants. This leads to the consequence that, from 2020, several renewable technologies may well be in a position to offer electricity at a cheaper rate than CCS power plants. In addition, a review of new life cycle assessments for CO2 separation in the power plant sector indicates that the greenhouse gas emissions from 1 kW h of electricity generated by first-generation CCS power plants could only be reduced by 68 % to 87 % (95 % in individual cases). Finally, a cautious, conservative estimate of the effective German CO2 storage capacity of approximately 5 billion tonnes of CO2 is calculated, including a fluctuation range yielding values between 4 and 15 billion tonnes of CO2. Therefore, the total CO2 emissions caused by large point sources in Germany could be stored for 12 years (basic value) or for 8 or 33 years (sensitivity values).
This article presents an integrated assessment conducted in order to explore whether carbon capture and storage (CCS) could be a viable technological option for significantly reducing future CO2 emissions in South Africa. The methodological approach covers a commercial availability analysis, an analysis of the long-term usable CO2 storage potential (based on storage capacity assessment, energy scenario analysis and source-sink matching), an economic and ecological assessment and a stakeholder analysis. The findings show, that a reliable storage capacity assessment is needed, since only rough figures concerning the effective capacity currently exist. Further constraints on the fast deployment of CCS may be the delayed commercial availability of CCS, significant barriers to increasing the economic viability of CCS, an expected net maximum reduction rate of the power plant's greenhouse gas emissions of 67%-72%, an increase in other environmental and social impacts, and low public awareness of CCS. One precondition for opting for CCS would be to find robust solutions to these constraints, taking into account that CCS could potentially conflict with other important policy objectives, such as affordable electricity rates to give the whole population access to electricity.
Green hydrogen and synthetic fuels are increasingly recognized as a key strategic element for the progress of the global energy transition. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with its large wind and solar potential, is well positioned to generate renewable energy at low cost for the production of green hydrogen and synthetic fuels, and is therefore considered as a potential future producer and exporter. Yet, while solar and wind energy potentials are essential, other factors are expected to play an equally important role for the development of green hydrogen and synthetic fuels (export) sectors. This includes, in particular, adequate industrial capacities and infrastructures. These preconditions vary from country to country, and while they have been often mentioned in the discussion on green hydrogen exports, they have only been examined to a limited extent. This paper employs a case study approach to assess the existing infrastructural and industrial conditions in Jordan, Morocco, and Oman for the development of a green hydrogen and downstream synthetic fuel (export) sector.