Solar panels installed in 554 citizens’ homes

Jamil Khan, Senior Reporter

The Etihad ESCO has successfully installed photovoltaic solar panels, with Dewa’s support, on 554 rooftops of citizens’ homes in Hatta and the retrofitting of 2,092 facilities and buildings in Dubai.

This was announced in a press conference held at Hyatt Creek Heights hotel on Sunday.

“I am pleased to announce the achievements of Etihad Energy Services Company (Etihad ESCO), launched by Dewa in 2013 to provide promising investment opportunities for companies specialising in energy efficiency contracts, financial institutions, and suppliers of green equipment and technology as well as develop an energy efficiency market, create jobs through energy efficiency projects, and retrofit facilities as part of its efforts to make Dubai a leading example of energy efficiency, regionally and globally, in line with the Demand Side Management Strategy 2030 that aims to reduce power and water consumption by 30% by 2030,” said Waleed Salman, Vice Chairman of Etihad ESCO.

Shedding further light on the details, he said, “Our comprehensive strategy is aligned with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, as well as with the objectives of the 50-Year Charter and the Eight Principles of Governance in Dubai, launched by His Highness to consolidate the Emirate’s position as a global model of a futuristic city, raise its quality of life, and achieve the happiness of its citizens and residents. Last year, we achieved encouraging outcomes as a result of the success we attained from initiatives and projects for the retrofitting of buildings that we implemented in partnership with leading public and private sector organisations in Dubai. We aim to retrofit more than 30,000 existing buildings in Dubai by 2030 to ensure energy efficiency. The cumulative cost of such strategic projects will be around Dhs30 billion, while the estimated value of savings is Dhs82 billion, giving the Demand Side Management plan a Positive Net Economic Impact of Net Present Value of Dhs52 billion. I am pleased to present to you today the important results achieved by Etihad ESCO during the past year as well as our contribution to significant energy savings in Dubai.

Our partnerships with the public and private sectors created significant opportunities to achieve the objectives of the Demand Side Management Strategy in Dubai,” he said.