Clean Energy – Green Hydrogen
The Middle East hosts some of the world's busiest aviation hubs and its most competitive solar and wind resources. That combination makes the region a natural home for large-scale e-SAF production. This talk sets out how green hydrogen developers can build e-SAF supply chains that are competitive and investable, even before regional SAF regulation exists.
Offtake is undeniably the missing link for most projects. The talk argues that bilateral agreements between airlines, fuel suppliers and hydrogen developers can secure early-mover market positions. They allow partners to share first-of-a-kind risk and lock in long-term access to scarce compliant molecules. Demand for those molecules is already taking shape in the export markets:
Europe: ReFuelEU Aviation sets a synthetic-fuel sub-mandate of 1.2% from 2030, rising to 35% by 2050.
Singapore: a SAF levy applies from 2026, starting at a 1% SAF target.
Japan: the national target is 10% SAF by 2030.
Korea: a 1% SAF blending obligation applies from 2027.
The talk also explains what EU compliance requires under RED III: the 70% greenhouse-gas saving threshold, renewable-electricity rules, and CO2-sourcing requirements. The last point matters most for carbon feedstock, because fossil industrial CO2 is only accepted until 2036–2041.
Drawing on Acwa's experience as a global leader in green hydrogen, the talk closes with a practical roadmap. It shows how the region can move from exporting molecules to becoming a trusted supplier of certified aviation fuel.
Speaker(s)
Omar Germouni is Head of Origination for Synthetic Fuels and Green Hydrogen at Acwa. He leads global origination across green hydrogen, ammonia, methanol and sustainable aviation fuel. His remit covers strategic validation, techno-economic assessment, partnership structuring and long-term offtake across the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, China, Europe and Asia-Pacific. He has +20 years of experience in hydrogen and energy. Previously he held senior roles at Air Liquide, where he oversaw a major capital-investment portfolio, and served as Senior Strategic Advisor at Energy Solutions Company. He delivered a hydrogen refueling station in the UAE in 2017. He has also structured offtake, joint-development and equity partnerships for large-scale hydrogen projects. Omar's work focuses on turning regulation, certification and commercial structures into bankable clean-fuel projects.
