Dewa’s ‘initiatives’ support energy, water conservation

Dubai / WAM

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa’s) awareness initiatives and programmes have supported energy and water conservation and educating society about the importance of protecting natural resources and reducing our carbon footprint.
Dewa’s conservation activities have gained the support of its audiences with an increased turnout and positive impact.
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dewa, praised Dewa’s commitment to achieving a balance between development and environment to protect the rights of the future generations in living in a clean, healthy, and safe environment. This is in accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 and the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050 to provide 100 percent of Dubai’s total power capacity from clean energy sources by 2050.
“At Dewa, we are guided by the forward-looking vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to turn climate challenges into future opportunities for generations to come. We are also committed to supporting policies that accelerate climate action worldwide and advancing the use of energy across vital sectors, strengthening public-private collaboration, and partnering with society members to limit practices that harm the environment,” Al Tayer added.
Dewa’s conservation programmes and initiatives have resulted in cumulative savings between 2012 and 2021 up to 2.2 TWh of electricity and 5.6 billion gallons of water. This is equal to saving AED1.2 billion and reducing 1.1 million tonnes of carbon emissions.
Dewa participates in the most prominent global environmental events to raise awareness about the dangers of climate change. Among the most prominent events are Earth Hour, World Earth Day, National Environment Day, World Energy Day, World Water Day, World Environment Day, and others. Dewa also invites community members to participate in the “Green Pledge” available on its website to contribute to making positive change.
Dubai was the first Arab city to celebrate Earth Hour in 2008, a year after its first-time celebration in Sydney, Australia. From then until 2022, Earth Hour in Dubai has achieved cumulative savings of 3.45 GWh and helped reduce 1,739.3 tonnes of carbon emissions.
The Innovation Centre at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park globally, is a global platform for clean and renewable energy innovations. It aims to shape the future of sustainable energy worldwide and leads qualitative research in these areas by harnessing the latest innovative technologies. Dewa intends the centre to create more awareness about sustainability, train Emiratis, and increase competition in this promising market. The centre works with universities, organisations, and local and global start-ups.
Through the Smart Living initiative, customers can monitor home usage themselves. They can log into their Dewa accounts on the website or smart app, check their digital dashboards to monitor their usage, learn about slab tariffs, get conservation tips, and develop conservation plans. Customers can also benefit from the “My Sustainable Living” programme by comparing their consumption with similar homes. They can also use Dewa Store offers to purchase energy and water-saving devices.
The Green Charger initiative supports the concept of sustainability and mobility. This is done by encouraging the public to use electric vehicles by providing charging stations in Dubai. There are now 325 Green Charger stations, with 560 charging points distributed across Dubai. Dewa allows customers registered in the Green Charger service and those not registered (by using the Guest Mode) to charge their vehicles at the stations.
Dewa launches a campaign every year called ‘Let’s Make This Summer Green’ over three months. This is done by encouraging them to use innovative services and features available on Dewa’s website and smart app to manage and monitor their electricity and water consumption and help them conserve consumption. The campaign also focuses on acquiring energy-saving devices with 4 or 5 stars from Esma (Emirates Standardisation and Metrology).
To prepare the next generations to become future leaders who achieve sustainable development, Dewa broadcasts the animated series “The Adventures of Noor and Hayat”, on its YouTube channel DEWAOfficial. The two characters of Dewa represent electricity and water. The channel has registered over four million views since its launch. Dewa also provides an electronic adventure magazine, Noor and Hayat, about their exciting adventures, accompanied by conservation heroes in illustrated stories.
Abraham Accords already kick-started mutual investment platforms, including Abraham Fund, which will mobilise $3 billion in private sector-led investment and development initiatives, he noted. The Abu Dhabi Investment Office’s (ADIO) first-ever overseas office in Tel Aviv, and the Dubai Investment Development Agency’s MoU with the Manufacturers’ Association of Israel to explore investment opportunities are similar initiatives in this direction, Al Zeyoudi pointed out.
The CEPA will also enable investment flows into tourism infrastructure projects and opening more flights between both countries, Al Zeyoudi said, adding that daily flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv will start next month.
The CEPA also offers greater market access for UAE services exports, of which travel and aviation will be the major beneficiaries, he said.
“Business travel will accelerate as more Israeli businesses open up here and Israeli companies participate in conferences and events – which began with Expo 2020 Dubai. Obviously, in terms of visitor numbers, the Abraham Accords created the biggest single change the UAE has welcomed more than 250,000 Israeli visitors by the end of 2021, and that figure will only climb once we fully emerge from Covid.”
Visa-free entry for all UAE nationals to Israel, the beginning of daily Emirates flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv in June, Etihad Airways and Wizz Air offering direct flights from Abu Dhabi to Tel Aviv-Yafo also help boost the tourist traffic between both countries, the minister said.
Deal to elevate all industries
The CEPA is a broad-based deal that is designed to elevate all industry sectors – this is clear from the near-uniformity of the tariff reduction, Al Zeyoudi noted.
However, it is clear that both economies have similar priorities such as renewable energy, healthcare, advanced technology, water and food security, logistics and transport, space sciences etc.
Since the signing of the Abraham Accords, there has been a series of important MoUs and investments in these sectors, he noted.