Agritech and decarbonization updates from UAE and Oman

AGRITECH-

Silal + Bayer to boost sustainable agriculture: Abu Dhabi’s agri-food and technology company Silal and Germany’s Bayer have signed an MoU to expand their partnership on agritech initiatives, according to a statement. The partnership aims to advance agricultural practices in desert environments while addressing climate change challenges. The agreement builds on their successful collaboration and outlines four key initiatives: Digital Farming Solutions, Forward Farming Model, Agricultural Capacity Building & Traceability, and Vegetable Seed Trials.

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What they’ll do: The two will collaborate on developing cutting-edge digital farming solutions tailored to the region’s agricultural needs, the statement adds. The partnership will also scale up agricultural capacity building through Bayer’s certification BayG.A.P. program that supports farmers through the required process to get certifications that allow them to access global supply chains. The collaboration also includes comprehensive vegetable seed trials to identify crops better suited to local growing conditions and market demands.

DECARBONIZATION-

Oman establishes center to support national net-zero policymaking: Oman’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals will establish the Oman Net Zero Centre to help the country goal to achieve net zero emissions policies by 2050, Oman News Agency reports. The center will be involved in setting Oman’s net zero strategies and plans, cooperating with government agencies, monitoring decarbonization project implementation, and helping the public and private sectors decarbonize. It will also outline challenges and recommend improvements in implementing decarbonization strategies and will lead environmental campaigns to encourage national participation.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

• EGA is developing pilot reduction cells: Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) started constructing ten pilot reduction cells for its next-generation, low-carbon smelting technology EX, designed to produce more aluminum with less energy and lower emissions, The first hot metal is expected in the first half of 2025. The initiative incorporates IoT sensors and artificial intelligence for real-time data gathering and autonomous control. (Statement)
• Dewa’s green hydrogen project reaches 90-ton milestone: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority’s (Dewa) green hydrogen project has produced around 90 tons of green hydrogen since its launch in May 2021, generating over 1 GWh of energy and offsetting some 450 tonnes of CO2 emissions. (Statement)