Ministry of Environment Signs 'Water Resources Cooperation' MOU with UAE... "Strengthening Korean Companies' Entry"

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Dongwoo Lee] The Ministry of Environment announced on the 16th that Minister Han Hwajin of the Ministry of Environment signed the 'Korea-UAE Water Resources Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)' with the UAE Minister of Energy Infrastructure in Abu Dhabi, coinciding with President Yoon Seok-yeol's state visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

This MOU includes measures to strengthen the UAE water industry entry base such as seawater desalination and smart water management, cooperation on water resource modeling, and joint responses to climate change. The Ministry of Environment stated that this MOU was made possible as a result of active mutual cooperation since the signing of a director-general level MOU for water resource cooperation between Korea and the UAE in November 2015.

Both countries agreed to first elevate the signatories to ministerial level and expand and strengthen cooperation in water management fields including seawater desalination and artificial intelligence (AI) water treatment plants. The UAE is currently bidding or progressing projects for a total of four seawater desalination facility projects worth about 2 trillion won, including 'Shuweihat 4' and 'Abu Dhabi Island' (Abu Dhabi), 'Hassan Phase 1' (Dubai), and 'Hamriyah' (Sharjah).

This agreement is expected to have a positive impact on domestic companies entering the UAE seawater desalination sector. It is also anticipated that potential demand in the smart water management market, a strong area for Korea, will increase.

Minister Han held a luncheon meeting with representatives of Korean companies operating in the UAE on the same day to discuss support measures from the Ministry of Environment. He also met with officials responsible for ordering UAE seawater desalination facilities to promote domestic technologies.

Minister Han said, "Taking this water resources cooperation MOU as an opportunity, we will strengthen cooperation in the water sector between the two countries and actively support Korean companies to achieve meaningful and practical results in the UAE."

Meanwhile, the Presidential Office reported that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan held a summit with President Yoon the previous day and decided to invest 30 billion dollars (about 37 trillion won) in Korea.

Han Hwa-jin, Minister of Environment (center), visited 'Masdar City,' an eco-friendly city being designed and constructed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government in Abu Dhabi, on the 15th (local time). She is receiving an explanation from Stephan Severance, head of the Masdar construction team. (Photo by Ministry of Environment)