RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Aramco has joined Rice University’s Carbon hub, an initiative to accelerate the energy transition by developing sustainable uses of hydrocarbons. Aramco has joined Carbon Hub with a $10 million, five-year sponsorship commitment. “With this collaboration, there is great potential in the coproduction of hydrogen and carbon-based materials from hydrocarbons, aiming to significantly reduce the carbon intensity of energy systems and infrastructures worldwide,” said Ahmad Al Khowaiter, Aramco’s chief technology officer. Launched in 2019, Carbon Hub supports a zero-emissions future where clean hydrogen energy and advanced carbon materials are coproduced efficiently and sustainably from hydrocarbons. Aramco in partnership with Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, or SABIC, and other Carbon Hub members plan to develop carbon materials to potentially displace emissions-intensive materials across broad industry sectors.