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Dubai / WAM
The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), with Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), an independent organisation that recognises excellence in green business industry performance and practices globally, working in 160 countries.
According to the MoU, the two organisations will collaborate in research and development, training, and promoting green buildings by applying the Platinum Rating for green buildings developed by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, LEED, of the US Green Building Council (USGBC).
Also, according to the MoU, GBCI will support the Dubai Solar Show 2018 as a sponsor. DEWA will organise the solar show, in conjunction with the Water, Energy, Technology, and Environment Exhibition, WETEX, from October 23-25.
The MoU was signed by Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Managing Director and CEO of DEWA, and Mahesh Ramanujam, CEO of USGBC and GBCI.
The signing ceremony was attended by Waleed Salman, Executive Vice President of Business Development and Excellence; Abdullah Obaidullah, Executive Vice President of Water and Civil; Khawla Al Mehairi, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Government Communications at DEWA, and Ali Al Jassim, CEO of Etihad ESCO.
The MoU supports DEWA’s efforts to meet the Demand Side Management Strategy to reduce electricity and water use by 30 percent by 2030, and the Carbon Abatement Strategy to reduce carbon emissions by 16 percent by 2021.
“The MoU with GBCI is part of our efforts to promote cooperation with international organisations and work together to establish the foundations of environmental sustainability,†said Al Tayer.
This supports the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 to provide 75 percent of Dubai’s total power output from clean energy sources by 2050 and make Dubai the city with the lowest carbon footprint in the world,” said Al Tayer.
He further noted that DEWA has established Etihad ESCO to help retrofit some 30,000 existing buildings in Dubai. This requires total investments of AED30 billion and is expected to result in financial savings of AED82 billion, with expected savings of AED52 billion.
DEWA’s sustainable building in Al Quoz is the largest government building in the world to receive a Platinum Rating for green buildings from LEED. The building uses 66 percent less energy and 48 percent less water and features an on-site 660-kilowatt solar power plant. DEWA is also building its new headquarters, named Al-Shera’a, which is Arabic for “sail.” The new building will be the tallest, largest, and smartest zero-energy building in the world.