Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower), the world’s largest district cooling services provider, is reaffirming its commitment to cut cooling emissions in response to the fresh strides made by UN Environment. In a recent statement, the global environmental authority has announced new developments in the efforts to curtail cooling and heating emissions worldwide. The very latest is that the UN Environment plans to support new district cooling projects in India and in Bosnia and Herzegovina as part of its ‘District Energy in Cities Initiative’.
Over the last few years, UN Environment has cautioned that the expansion of middle class in developing economies will place heavy demands on heating and cooling systems worldwide — particularly as temperatures across the planet climb to unprecedented, dangerous highs — and will result in ballooning the greenhouse gas emissions. According to the organisation, traditional cooling systems consume over 50 per cent of building energy, as well as run on the excessive use of fossil fuels, that further exacerbates rising the planet’s temperature.
District cooling has been selected by UN Environment as an unparalleled energy-efficient and energy-saving solution. Empower, in line with UN Environment directives, is committed to decreasing emissions by cultivating a culture of efficient district cooling systems across the UAE and beyond. By partnering with UN Environment’s” District Energy in Cities Initiative” — an initiative targeted at delivering significant environmental benefits around the world — Empower has scaled up its efforts to a larger, and global level.
“As a key partner of UN Environment’s “District Energy in Cities” Initiative, we are dedicated to reduce harmful emissions generated by heating and cooling systems. We are committed to implementing our strategy to reduce the harmful emissions from cooling systems by working and joining forces with our strategic partners, including UN Environment,” noted Ahmad Bin Shafar, the CEO of Empower.
Bin Shafar stressed that Empower highlights the importance of promoting environmentally sound practices and sustainable developments across the UAE, as well the rest of the world. Empower also provides financial aid to conduct a study to evaluate the potential of District Energy Systems in certain parts of India. Meanwhile, here in the UAE, Empower is actively contributing to the implementation of the UAE Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy.
Empower became a partner of UN Environment in the District Energy in Cities Initiative as a multi-stakeholder to extend its efforts beyond the UAE. Coordinated by UN Environment, the initiative is supporting efforts to shift the heating and cooling sector onto energy efficient and renewable energy solutions. It aims to double the rate of energy efficiency improvements for heating and cooling in buildings by 2030 and helping countries to meet their climate and sustainable development targets. The initiative also supports local and national governments to build expertise and implement policies geared to accelerate investment in modern, low-carbon and climate resilient district energy systems. UN Environment is currently providing technical support to cities in eight countries including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chile, China, India, Malaysia, Morocco, Russia and Serbia.
Empower has more than 1,090 buildings that are using district cooling services, catering to more than 100,000 customers. The company operates more than 1.43 Million Refrigeration Tons (RT), providing environmentally friendly district cooling services to large-scale real estate developments, such as Bluewaters, Jumeirah Group, Business Bay, Jumeirah Beach Residence, Dubai International Financial Centre, Palm Jumeirah, Jumeirah Lake Towers, Ibn Battuta Mall, Discovery Gardens, Dubai Healthcare City, Dubai World Trade Centre Residences and Dubai Design District, amongst others.