Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) concluded its participation as Sustainability Partner, at the 16th Arab Media Forum (AMF) 2017. The Forum was held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, with the theme ‘Civil Dialogue,’ on the 1-2 May at Madinat Jumeirah.
DEWA highlighted its efforts, projects, initiatives, and programmes in sustainability, clean energy, environmental conservation, and building skills, abilities, a solid economy and a sustainable civilisation with the theme, “Global leadership for reviving a sustainable civilisation for generations to come.” DEWA also emphasised its achievements in smart transformation with the Smart Dubai initiative to make Dubai the smartest and the happiest city in the world. This took place in front of senior government officials from the region and around the world, some of the most prominent media figures, a group of political and academic leaders, and over 2,000 Arab and foreign media professionals.
Various VIPs and government officials visited DEWA’s stand, as well as Arab and foreign media, to review its initiatives and projects.
“We participated in the forum as Sustainability Partner, since sustainability is a global issue that touches on social, economic, human, and environmental development. The media plays a major role in supporting and consolidating this culture and strengthening the pillars of sustainability. In order to become a sustainable innovative world-class utility, we are making global achievements that support the position of the UAE. We are keen to ensure that these achievements are the basis of our participation and of our civil dialogue with all segments of society. The forum is our bridge of communication with Arab and international media, and press organisations,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA.
“The forum also provides a global interactive platform with our media colleagues to deliver targeted messages on all the energy issues, conservation of natural resources, environment and rationalisation of consumption, which has become a focus of debate within governments around the world to provide safe, sustainable and affordable energy. Dubai, and the UAE, have pioneered the development and implementation of strategies and plans to diversify renewable energy to provide the major share of the energy mix, as well as increasing energy efficiency and managing energy demand. The UAE’s focus on renewable energy has led to low prices for solar power projects in Europe and the Middle East. These investments contribute to the transformation of oil- and gas-producing and exporting countries into major hubs for renewable energy production in general,” added Al Tayer.
Al Tayer said that sustainability has been an integral part of the civilisation of the UAE since ancient times and for future generations to come. This comes in light of DEWA’s sustainable environmental projects, global initiatives and technologies it is developing in research and development.
During its participation in the two-day forum, DEWA talked about its projects, notably the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and its Smart Initiatives, including Shams Dubai and Green Charger. Shams Dubai encourages building owners to install photovoltaic panels to generate electricity and connect them to DEWA’s grid. the electricity is used on site and the surplus is exported to DEWA’s network. The Green Charger builds the infrastructure and electric vehicle charging stations across Dubai, to encourage the public to use electric vehicles and contribute to protecting the environment.
DEWA also presented its new future building, Al-Sheraa (Arabic for Sail), which will be the tallest, largest, and smartest public net-Zero-Energy Building (ZEB) in the world, as well as its strategic projects in Hatta, including the construction of a 250MW hydroelectric power station in the mountains next to Hatta dam, as well as several other development projects to be completed within five years.
DEWA also highlighted Solar Decathlon Middle East (SDME) and its efforts in sustainability, promoting environmental awareness to protect natural resources, and reducing the carbon footprint.