ME-TECH 2026 opened in Dubai on September 14 with a focus on making refining and petrochemicals cleaner while keeping existing assets profitable. The three-day forum covers asset optimisation, AI and digital twins, and closer integration between refineries and petrochemical plants. On the emissions side, the agenda includes carbon management, CCUS, hydrogen, ammonia, future fuels, and the circular economy. Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak said the industry needs to cut energy use and emissions while improving reliability and margins. He stressed that technology alone will not be enough, and that workforce skills matter as much as hardware and software. The event also includes roundtables on shared industry challenges, which is where the practical details usually come out. For anyone tracking Gulf decarbonisation, the useful part is the focus on retrofitting and upgrading existing facilities rather than greenfield projects. That is where near-term emissions reductions in the region will actually happen.
