UAE and South Korean export credit agencies in pact to boost green energy projects

Etihad Credit Insurance and K-Sure will focus on the hydrogen economy, renewable energy and electric vehicle sectors

From right, UAE Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Suhail Al Mazrouei, ECI chief executive Massimo Falcioni, K-Sure chairman and president Inho Lee and Moon Sung-wook, South Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, after the signing ceremony. Photo: ECIShow less

Etihad Credit Insurance has signed an agreement with the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, better known as K-Sure, to boost investment in the development of sustainable green energy.

The partnership will focus on hydrogen projects and seek to boost trade relations between the UAE and South Korea, the export credit agencies said on Monday.

The efforts of the agencies, companies and the financial sector need to be the drivers to promote the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy, said ECI chief executive Massimo Falcioni.

The pact is expected to serve as a “catalyst” to enhance the competitive edge of export and business communities in the two countries.

“The crucial aspect of this pact lies in its greater focus on reinforcing initiatives that aim to reduce carbon emissions, reflecting the UAE’s national drive to achieve net zero emissions by 2050,” Mr Falcioni said.

The UAE is South Korea's top Arab trading partner, accounting for about 27 per cent of its total trade with other Arab countries.

In the first half of 2021, non-oil trade between the two countries grew to Dh8 billion ($2.17bn) while UAE exports to South Korea rose by 55 per cent annually to more than Dh300 million.

The volume of non-oil trade between the two countries was about Dh4.9bn in 2020.

Under the agreement, the state agencies will work on various projects in strategic sectors such as the hydrogen economy, renewable energy and electric vehicles through a wide range of trade credit insurance solutions.

“Our co-ordinated efforts and insurance solutions will eliminate many potential risks our traders and businesses face in a volatile marketplace, which has become more prone to instability due to the pandemic fallouts,” K-Sure chairman and president Inho Lee said.

“It [the agreement] will also strengthen our collaborative ongoing and future sustainability projects, proving to the world how co-operation between nations is indispensable to alleviate the grave ecological concerns of our times,”.

The agreement was signed during the UAE-Korea business round-table on hydrogen partnership on Monday.

The round-table was organised by ECI, the Federation of UAE Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Korea International Trade Association.

Apart from the strategic co-operation agreement between ECI and K-Sure, the countries signed two more co-operation agreements on how to foster energy transition efforts to reverse climate change.

In recent years, the UAE and South Korea have invested in strategic national industries such as renewables, nuclear energy, hydrocarbons, health care and logistics.

Major collaborative projects between the two countries include the $20bn Barakah nuclear power plant in Abu Dhabi.

Construction is being led by the Korea Electric Power Corporation, which is part of a consortium that also includes Hyundai, Samsung, Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power and Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction.

Earlier this year, the UAE’s sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala Investment Company, became part of a consortium that acquired a majority stake in Korean cosmetic pharmaceutical company Hugel for $1.5bn.

Last year, Korea’s NH Investment and Securities joined a group of asset management and sovereign wealth funds to invest $20.7bn in Adnoc’s midstream assets.