Rotterdam Courts UAE Investment in Hydrogen and Carbon Capture at ADIPEC

Schouten is leading a delegation of Dutch companies to the energy exhibition. More than 50 companies, most of them from the Rotterdam region, are exhibiting. She told Gulf News this showed business appetite for working with the UAE as well as government interest. "It's not only from the government side, but also from the business side. People want to continue doing business with the UAE," she said.

Hydrogen First, Green Later

Schouten named Holland Hydrogen One, one of the biggest infrastructure projects now under way at the port, as a route for future imports. Once the infrastructure is working, she said, Rotterdam could take in green hydrogen from the UAE. In the meantime she urged Gulf producers to start with blue hydrogen, which is made from natural gas with the carbon captured. "Don't wait until it must be green. Work with us to make the transition in hydrogen," she said.

She also pointed to carbon capture and storage as common ground, since both Rotterdam and the UAE are running CCS projects, and said the two sides could share knowledge in both directions.

Pitching the Port to Investors

On the investment case, Schouten cited the port's scale and its closely linked industrial base. She said investors would not be starting from scratch, because Rotterdam is already spending heavily on hydrogen infrastructure and its CCS infrastructure is in place. She added that permitting for new investment has become easier. "I'm really convinced that we can move forward, and that now is the time to look for opportunities to invest in the Port of Rotterdam," she told the newspaper.

Gulf News reported that Rotterdam is Europe's largest port and handles about 13 percent of the energy entering Europe. The municipality owns 70 percent of the port and the Dutch national government owns the other 30 percent. The Port of Rotterdam is also a shareholder in Oman's Port of Sohar. The city aims to have Europe's strongest port by 2050.

Schouten said she had already held talks at Abu Dhabi Port on the morning she arrived. Her delegation includes firms from the maritime, offshore, energy, dredging and battery technology sectors, and Dutch companies have worked on UAE dredging projects, including some of the country's islands. During ADIPEC, Rotterdam will also launch a Women in Energy initiative with Khalifa University.

AI on the Agenda

Schouten also said she wanted to learn about the UAE's work in artificial intelligence. "I'm curious what the UAE has to offer on AI, and how we can use it to improve the way we work and give a boost to the economy in the Netherlands and Europe," she said.

Why It Matters

European ports and industrial clusters are competing for Gulf capital and future hydrogen supply as they try to decarbonise heavy industry. Rotterdam's case to UAE producers rests on infrastructure it says already exists, which it argues lowers the risk for early movers. The interview did not mention any signed agreements or investment figures, so for now the visit is a pitch rather than a deal.