Solar & Clean Energy Forum

Monday 17th January

10.30 | Visit Exhibition

13.25 | Welcome

13.30 | Towards energy transition

Keynote Presentation

Presented by:

Dr. Shamma Al Malek

Director in Strategic Affairs Directorate

Abu Dhabi Department of Energy

13.40 | Delivering 100% renewable energy systems

Presentation

Presented by:

Jens Madrian

Executive Director, NEOM Energy

NEOM Energy & Water

14.00 | Planning for future energy needs

Keynote Presentation

In recent years governments have made clear that future cities need to be smarter and more energy efficient. Whilst Covid-19 reshaped some business practices, with employees becoming more distributed, has this changed thinking around future energy planning? And if so, how? This presentation will look at what needs to be in place to satisfy future demand, its makeup, and the impact this will have on investment in clean energy?

Presented by:

Bruce Smith

Executive Director, Strategy and Planning

Emirates Water & Electricity Company

14.20 | Energy transition in the new normal

Panel Discussion

What is the next stage of the ongoing energy transition evolution? Currently about 75% of energy use globally remains reliant on fossil fuel, a figure that needs to decline if many government targets are to be met. This panel will discuss what policies are required to promote the electrification of energy transition, the role that the private sector should play and ideas for tangible approaches that will bring about real change.

Confirmed speakers:

Jad Dib

Partner

McKinsey & Company

Hind Almutawa

Director of Electricity and Energy Trade

Ministry of Energy & Infrastructure, UAE

AbdulAziz Al Obaidli

Director of UAE Assets, Generation

Taqa

Carlos Gasco Travesedo

Executive Director of Energy Policy

Abu Dhabi Department of Energy

Elias Kassis

President, E&P UAE and Country Chair in UAE

TotalEnergies

15.00 | Maintaining grid stability in renewables-heavy environments

Panel Discussion

What effect is the rapid change in planning – particularly with working practices changing - combined with the increased use of renewables going to have on grid stability? Do interconnects between GCC countries need upgrading for different energy types, and should the GCC accelerate plans for a region-wide spot market?

Confirmed speakers:

Moderator: Thorsten Schwarz

Executive Director Grid Technology & Projects

NEOM Energy & Water

Bruce Stedall

Asset Management Director

Transco

Ahmed AlMazrouei

Director

Ministry of Energy & Infrastructure, UAE

Panos Bafis

Business Group Leader for Future Energy

GHD

Gorbuz Gonul

Director of Country Engagement and Partnershi

IRENA

15.35 | The future for community-level, distributed electricity in the Middle East

Panel Discussion

Is there a future for mini grids and distributed electricity in the region? To some extent this is happening through rooftop and C&I solar installations, but will the region embrace community-level clean energy systems, particularly as we see the number of smart, sustainable cities increase? And if so, does this offer greater opportunities around the digitalisation of energy, giving more control to the consumer?

Confirmed speakers: 

Daniel Zywietz

Founder & CEO

Enerwhere

Waleed AlHallaj

Business Development Manager – MENA

JinkoSolar

Eng. Mohammed Al Taani

Secretary General

Arab Renewable Energy Commission

16.10 | Utility-scale wind and solar power generation opportunities

Presentation

Andreas Stoerzel

Executive Director Corporate Development

NEOM Energy & Water

16.30 | Close of Day One

Tuesday 18th January

10.40 | Is Net Zero 2050 a target to pursue at all costs?

Presentation

Countries are in different economic shape and have their own developmental targets. In which case, should they all pursue Net Zero targets, no matter the impact on a government’s planned-for economic development? What roles do the more powerful nations have?

Presented by:

David Haboubi

Head of Nuclear and Net Zero Energy

SNC-Lavalin

11.00 | How is sustainability-linked finance evolving for renewables projects?

Panel Discussion

Bank financing is changing, with sustainability-linked loans (such as green bonds, green loans, and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) linked loans) expected to become more widespread. Their issuance is rising rapidly, so what does this mean for projects funding in the Middle East? This session will discuss the use of such loans, how their use for renewables projects will increase and what this will mean for organisations. Plus, the panel will discuss what are the other developments are happening in the sustainable finance space.

Confirmed speakers:

Diako Makhmalbaf

Senior Manager – Sustainable Finance Lead

HSBC

Stephen Knight

Partner, Banking and Finance

Dentons

Salma Bin Breik

Business Group Leader for Advisory – UAE

GHD

Abdulaziz Al-Muhaiza

Executive Director, Treasury

Saudi Electricity Company

11.45 | Securing the region’s largest sale of an independent renewable energy company

Case Study

Alcazar Energy’s first venture resulted in the largest sale of an independent renewable energy platform in the MENA region. This presentation will highlight the key lessons learnt during the seven-year journey with a focus on emerging markets.

Presented by:

Daniel Calderon

Managing Partner & Co-Founder

Alcazar Energy

12.10 | Meeting low carbon energy needs through small modular reactors

Case Study

What technologies are starting to play a greater role, such as BIM and digital twins, and how are these reshaping the future management of assets and increasing the accuracy of predictive maintenance. 

Presented by:

Alan Woods

SMR Director of Strategy and Business

Development, Rolls Royce SMR

12.30 | MESIA solar industry outlook update

Presented by:

Ahmed Nada

President

Middle East Solar Industry Association

13.00 | Visit Exhibition

14.45 | Hydrogen part 1: Regional opportunities today

Panel Discussion

Hydrogen has gained attention as a fuel of the future, but planned project work to 2025 will see its use more than double to 8.5GW. As a clean fuel that can help decarbonise the energy system, what are the tangible and practical opportunities for its use regionally? What challenges must be overcome and where are the economic opportunities for its growth?

Confirmed speakers:

Moderator: Gareth Wynn

Group Chief Communications Officer

Taqa

Sergio Lopez

Energy Policy Specialist/Expert

Abu Dhabi Department of Energy

Dr Emmanouil Kakaras

Executive Vice President Next Energy Business

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries EMEA

Dr Marcus Guzmann

ADNOC

Siemens Energy

Manuel Kuehn

Vice President

Siemens Energy

15.30 | Hydrogen part 2: Green hydrogen manufacture

Panel Discussion

What challenges must hydrogen overcome in terms of production, scale, transport and costs if its use in energy is to rise? Where are the upcoming use cases - in which sectors will it take a lead and what can others learn from those at the vanguard?

Confirmed speakers:

Moderator: Dan Feldman

Partner and Global Co-Lead, Energy Innovation

Shearman

Roland Kaeppner

Executive Director Hydrogen & Green Fuels

NEOM Energy & Water

Cornelius Matthes

Senior Vice President

Dii

Caroline Hillegeer

Chief Commercial Officer

Engie Hydrogen

Yusuf Macun

Managing Partner

Cranmore Partners

16.20 | Close of Day Two

Wednesday 19th January

10.30 | Welcome Address

10.35 | Developing storage technologies for renewable projects

Keynote Panel

Storage prices continue to fall and as a technology, its importance is increasing in planned projects. This discussion will focus on the advances being made in battery energy storage and look at the future of technologies such as hydrogen, and how these will change the future of long-term storage.

Confirmed speakers:

Moderator: Mohammed Atif

Area Manager, UAE

DNV GL

Marco Terruzzin

Chief Product Officer

Energy Vault

Dr. Brian Higgins

Director of Advanced Technologies,

Babcock & Wilcox

Shuvendu Bose

Consultant

Ministry of Energy & Infrastructure

11.15 | The rise of hybrid power

Panel Discussion

Are planners embracing hybrid power projects? In the past we have seen combined cycle gas-fired power plants coupled with a small amount of solar PV. What are the advantages for renewable energy projects to adopt hybrid approaches, mixing wind and solar, or in future adding in alternative fuel types such as biofuels or hydrogen to augment plans? And what will hybridisation mean for PPAs and the structure of project funding?

Confirmed speakers:

Alex Katon

General Manager

Summit Global Power

Gurmeet Kaur

Partner

Pinsent Masons

Mira Attieh

Business Development Manager

Middle East, Terabase Energy

Youssef Ammar

Senior Hybrid Expert

Yellow Door Energy

Moderator: Youssef Ammar

Senior Hybrid Expert

Yellow Door Energy

12.00 | Resiliency within power systems planning with variable renewable generation

Presentation

Presented by:

Dr Thomas Ackermann

Founder & CEO

Energynautics

12.20 | Reinvigorating the supply chain - from globalised to localised?

In Conversation

After years of globalisation and centralisation to drive prices down, the global pandemic has hit some supply chains hard, forcing organisations to reconsider their structure, and investigate a more localised approach. What implication is this having in the renewable energy sector? Are companies rethinking their inventory management, and how is this affecting project delivery?

Confirmed speakers:

Moderator: Jesus Prado

Director

Nextracker

Abhay Bhargava

Senior Director- MEASA Energy & Environment

Frost & Sullivan

Carmen Vidal

Chief Procurement Officer

Engie

12.45 | Improving long-term efficiency in solar facilities through automation

Presentation

Increased digitalisation will help drive continual improvements in the efficiency and responsiveness of solar facilities. It will enable improved monitoring and greater data insights that can also improve the competitiveness. This presentation will explore why the industry must embrace digitalisation and the long-term benefits it will bring.

Eran Meller

Chairman & Co-Founder

Ecoppia

13.00 | Visit Exhibition

14.30 | Advancing the circular economy in the solar industry

Panel Discussion

Countries around the region have made significant strides to promote, develop and use solar energy. But what planning needs to be in place for end of life for materials used? What advances are there in the technologies being used that will increase product lifecycle? Is the industry facing a future challenge, and how does it embrace the circular economy, reusing or recycling materials and minimising waste?

Confirmed speakers:

Thorsten Schwarz

Executive Director Grid Technology & Projects

NEOM Energy & Water

Diaa Eed

Director, Strategic Business MENA

Sungrow

Moneef Barakat

Managing Director

Solarabic

Moderator: Rob Jones

Forums Director

World Future Energy Summit

15.15 | Ensuring long-term solar PV performance to maximise asset profitability

Panel Discussion

This panel will discuss the use of PV materials in hot, arid climates and what needs to be done to ensure their long-term, effective functioning. It will look at the monitoring of performance to maximise profitability and minimise downtime, and what research is needed to ensure that materials are fit for use in the region’s climate. How do the huge changes in temperatures effect solar PV performance between seasons and what can be done to mitigate these challenges? 

Confirmed Speakers:

Moderator: Ahmed Mulla

Deputy CEO

Infinity Power

Laurent Longuet

CEO

SirajPower

Eng. Mohammed Al Taani

Secretary General

Arab Renewable Energy Commission

Joseph Nader

Solar Energy Division Manager & BDM MENA

TUV Rheinland

Jitendra Morankar

Vice President Global Design Applications

Nextracker

16.00 | Close of Solar & Clean Energy Forum