Aligning Biofuels Policy with the Sustainable Development Goals in the UAE: A Systematic Literature Review

The United Arab Emirates is actively making efforts to shift the current dependence on fossil fuels to a more cleaner and sustainable energy direction, and biofuels are a prospective part of this amendment. The practicality, opportunities, policy framework, and sustainability compatibility of biofuel production in the UAE have been estimated in this systematic review. It distinctly focuses on the waste-based feedstocks that do not compete with food sources. This review also points out UAE’s optimal position in terms of production of biofuels using used cooking oil, agricultural waste, municipal and sewage waste, animal waste and local microalgae adapted to the desert and coastal environment, which has been compiled from various research works. This review followed PRISMA guidelines that included 26 studies to analyze the technical, economic and social feasibility of biofuels. Biofuels are highly compatible with the national clean energy agenda as they help significantly reduce carbon emission (in comparison to traditional fossil fuels) and grow the renewable energy market. However, as shown in this review, there are many policy constraints that limit the growth of this sector. Waste based biofuels have the potential to benefit UAE’s transition to renewable energy, as shown in this review. Improved policies and governance systems, financial support, and increased social awareness/participation is needed to assist biofuels to have the necessary impact on national sustainability objectives.