Saudi Arabia energy transition: where does the kingdom stand?

The development of renewable energies and energy efficiency are amongst the key pillars towards economic diversification across the national “ Vision P lans ” of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. The Covid-19 pandemic came to crystalize the structural weaknesses of oil exporting countries . A ffected by a double shock – the Covid-19 and the oil price shock that resulted from the sudden stop in global oil demand- Gulf economies suffered massively from energy exports revenues loss, a conjuncture that brought to the forefront the need to push further for a sustainable economic diversification. Benefiting from a privileged location, abundant resources (solar, wind), GCC countries, and more particularly Saudi Arabia, display a strong will to operate this energy transitio n - the recent announcement of the Green Middle East and Saudi initiatives are a clear example of these efforts Even though , we believe the oi l industr y will remain the key driver for the post-Covid recovery and mid-term economic development for the GCC economies. In this paper we want to offer our readers with a broad review on key themes and facts that currently define the promising prospects of the energy transition in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.