Dubai - MENA Herald: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), in cooperation with the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), organised a DEWA-Japan Business Seminar & Networking day. Over 50 Japanese companies participated in the seminar, which was held at DEWA’s Sustainable Building in Al Quoz. The seminar supports DEWA’s efforts to enhance networking and strengthen relationships with Japanese companies. This is part of our commitment to achieve common interests. At the seminar DEWA invited Japanese companies to participate in the 18th Water, Energy, Technology, and Environment Exhibition (WETEX 2016) and the 1st Dubai Solar Show from 4-6 October 2016.
The seminar was attended by HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), HE Hisashi Michigami, Consul General of Japan in Dubai, Masami Ando, Managing Director of JETRO, DEWA’s Executive Vice Presidents and Vice Presidents, and officials from JETRO and DEWA.
In his opening speech, Al Tayer welcomed participants to the seminar. He also expressed his hope that the seminar will enhance the bilateral trade between the UAE and Japan that has grown continuously over the past few years. He invited Japanese companies to explore investment opportunities in Dubai, the UAE, and the region as a whole in energy, renewable energy, water, and the environment.
“The UAE is one of Japan’s major bilateral trade partners, having done over USD 51 billion of business in 2014, with non-oil trade between the two countries reaching USD 15 billion in 2015. Over 300 Japanese companies work in the UAE, 250 of which are in Dubai. In light of the growth in Dubai and the UAE in all walks of business, these figures will grow further where Dubai offers promising opportunities to Japanese companies, especially with the ambitious vision of the Emirate being realised by its major projects. These include the Smart Dubai initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the happiest city in the world, and to become the innovation benchmark for smart cities seeking global sustainability and competitiveness. DEWA is a strategic partner and actively contributes to achieve this initiative by implementing major projects in collaboration with our partners in the public and private sectors. DEWA launched three pioneering initiatives that support the Smart Dubai initiative. These are Shams Dubai to encourage building owners to install photovoltaic panels to generate electricity and connect it to DEWA’s grid, Smart Applications through Smart Meters and Grids, and the Green Charger to set up the infrastructure and install electric-vehicle charging stations across the Emirate,” added Al Tayer.
Al Tayer emphasised that Dubai has a clear strategy for sustainable development based on the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who launched the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 in November 2015. The strategy provides 7% of Dubai’s energy from clean sources by 2020, 25% by 2030 and 75% by 2050.
“We intend to build the largest Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) project in the world. DEWA has released a tender for leading international CSP consultants to submit their proposals for advisory services for the 200MW first project of the CSP plant. It will be operational by April 2021. DEWA will generate 1,000MW using this technology by 2030 in the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park. This is the largest single-site solar park in the world that adopts the Independent Power Producer model (IPP). It will produce 1,000MW by 2020 and 5,000MW by 2030, with a total investment of AED 50 billion. DEWA has received a globally-competitive price of USD 2.99 cents per kilowatt hour for the park’s 800MW third phase using the photovoltaic technology. This demonstrates the trust that international investors have both in Dubai and in DEWA, and is a testament of our transparency in all our projects, in addition to DEWA’s strong financial position. Recently, the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s raised its long-term corporate credit rating for DEWA to 'BBB+' with a stable outlook. S&P expects DEWA to remain a key enabler of the government's strategy and continue as a key partner in all new independent power and water production projects,” said Al Tayer.
Al Tayer noted that DEWA’s first and second phases of the Hassyan clean-coal power plant uses the IPP model. DEWA established Etihad Energy Services Company (Etihad ESCO) to provide promising investment opportunities in energy-performance contracts for companies working in green equipment and technology. 30,000 buildings will be retrofitted in Dubai to make them energy-efficient in the first phase of this project. Its present costs are approximately AED 30 billion, with returns of AED 82 billion and a net present profit of AED 52 billion.
“To realise DEWA’s vision to become a sustainable innovative world-class utility, we work with our partners in implementing mega and pioneering projects. We cooperate with them to enhance operations and improve quality and excellence. This supports the Dubai Plan 2021 for the Emirate to be one of the world’s leading business centres and the most business-friendly city and a preferred investment destination. I am pleased to invite energy, water, and environment Japanese companies to invest in Dubai’s promising projects. I would like to also invite you to participate in the 18th Water, Technology, and Environment Exhibition (WETEX), which is organised by DEWA under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Minister of Finance and President of DEWA, from 4-6 October 2016. WETEX has established its position as one of the largest specialist exhibitions in the world. Each year, it attracts a large number of international companies to display their green solutions and products. This comes at a time when the UAE and the Government of Dubai continue to launch promising projects to support the green economy and sustainable development,” said Al Tayer.
Michigami expressed his appreciation for DEWA for organising the seminar. He noted that Japanese companies consider Dubai a major business hub in the Middle East and North Africa. He invited Japanese companies to explore investment opportunities in Dubai, noting that Japan has a lot to offer in the areas of smart cities, and energy, water, and environmental technologies.
Speakers at the event included Waleed Salman, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at DEWA, who presented DEWA’s strategy and the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050. Dr. Yousef Al Akraf, Executive Vice President of Business Support and Human Resources at DEWA, presented WETEX, the Dubai Solar Show, and future investment opportunities in Dubai and DEWA’s pipelined projects. Mohammed Abdulkareem Al Shamsi, Acting Executive Director of the UAE Water Aid Foundation, highlighted the organisation's operations under the umbrella of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives. Stephane Le Gentil, CEO of Etihad Energy Services Company (Etihad ESCO) talked about available opportunities in the area of building retrofitting in Dubai.
This year, in conjunction with WETEX, DEWA is organising the first Dubai Solar Show, which will be the largest of its kind in the region. It will be a key platform for the public and private sectors to make deals, build partnerships, review the latest solar-energy technologies, learn about current and future projects in the region and market needs, and explore opportunities to take part in solar-energy projects and programmes. Organising the show in conjunction with WETEX and the World Green Economy Summit is a chance to reach thousands of exhibitors, participants, officials, and decision makers in the UAE, the GCC, and the Middle East as a whole. Participants and visitors can make the most of the busy agendas of the two events, which feature conferences, workshops, and specialised activities. They can also meet experts and specialists from around the world to discuss developing solar energy and expanding its adoption in the region to achieve sustainable development and ensure a sustainable future for future generations.
