oa The potential obstacles and opportunities for a transition of the GCC economies towards a sustainable, diversified and efficient energy system

As a result of the challenges and concerns represented by the climate change issue, energy security and the volatility in energy markets, the energy system of the world economy has entered into the early stages of a gradual and sustained shift towards a more sustainable energy system.

The GCC economies are directly concerned by this global drive as they are one of the main producers and providers of hydrocarbons to the world economy and their economies rely almost entirely on hydrocarbons on two aspects, first of all, as a source of revenue and, therefore, a core element of their political economy and, secondly, hydrocarbons constitute the only energy source of their energy mix. In addition, the GCC countries are among the top 25 countries of CO2 emissions per capita. In this respect, the future of the energy system of the GCC region will strongly depend on the capacity of its governments to adapt to this world tendency. This paper will question, from a policy perspective and, within the framework of the rentier state theory, the potential opportunities, obstacles and uncertainties facing the GCC governments in order to conduct a gradual transition towards a sustainable, diversified and efficient energy system.