MD & CEO receives ADWEA delegation

Dubai - MENA Herald: HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) received a delegation headed by HE Abdullah Al Musleh Al Ahbabi, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority(ADWEA), at DEWA’s head office in Dubai. The delegation included HE Mohammed Bin Jarsh, Managing Director of Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Company (ADWEC), HE Abdulaziz Al Hemaidi, Advisor for Al Ain Distribution Company, HE Saeed Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Acting Director General of Abu Dhabi Distribution Company, and other representatives. This is one of a series of ongoing visits to consolidate cooperation between government organisations in the UAE to identify international best practices.
The delegation’s visit built cooperation between the two organisations, identified best international practices, and conducted benchmarking. DEWA makes continuous efforts to improve its services to the highest levels, adhering to the development goals of the Emirate, and providing electricity and water services to the highest standards of reliability and efficiency, to achieve the happiness of all customers.
The meeting was also attended by Nasser Lootah, Executive Vice President of Generation at DEWA, Abdullah Obaidullah, Executive Vice President of Water & Civil at DEWA, Hussain Lootah, Executive Vice President of Transmission Power at DEWA, Rashid Bin Humaidan, Executive Vice President of Distribution Power at DEWA, Khawla Al Mehairi, Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications at DEWA, and Dr. Abdulla Al Hammadi, Vice President of Strategy and Performance Management at DEWA.
Al Tayer welcomed the delegation, highlighting the partnership between the two organisations, which covers several areas across the energy and water sectors. Al Tayer noted that the visit supports the directives of HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, and HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to enhance the international position of the UAE, and strengthen cooperation between government organisations, while enhancing their performance, productivity, and quality of services provided to customers.
Al Ahbabi commended DEWA on its efforts and expressed interest in cooperating with DEWA, and exchanging experiences, information, and the latest technologies, to contribute to sustainable development in Dubai.
During the meeting, Al Tayer highlighted DEWA’s strategy, plans, and projects in the renewable energy market, which support the UAE Vision 2021 to transform the UAE into one of the best counties in the world by 2021, and to enhance the UAE’s level of international competitiveness in renewable energy. This also supports the Dubai Plan 2021 to provide the best government services and international practices, in order to achieve the happiness of society as a whole.
“DEWA is comprised of over 10,000 employees, and provides services to over 760,000 customers. We are working to enhance the efficiency and capacity of our infrastructure, with a net production capacity of 9,656 megawatts (MW) of electricity, and 470 million imperial gallons of desalinated water per day. In compliance with the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, DEWA aims to become a global role model by supporting economic growth in Dubai, while ensuring the efficiency of the energy sector to achieve our environmental and sustainability objectives, and transform Dubai into a global hub for clean energy and green economy. The Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 aims to provide 7% of Dubai’s power from clean energy by 2020. This target is set to increase to 25% by 2030, and 75% by 2050,” said Al Tayer.
“Several initiatives fall under the umbrella of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050. This includes the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which is the largest single-site solar park in the world, with a planned capacity of 5,000 MW by 2030, and a total investment of AED 50 billion. We are taking confident steps towards the diversification of the energy mix in the Emirate, and selected the consortium led by Masdar as the preferred bidder for the 800MW third phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, based on the IPP (Independent Power Producer) model. DEWA has received a globally-competitive price of USD 2.99 cents per kilowatt hour (lW/h), for the park’s third phase based on the IPP model, which will be operational by 2020,” added Al Tayer.
“We launched a new phase in June, as part of our efforts to diversify our energy resources, in adherence with the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy. The strategy aims to provide 75% of Dubai’s total power output from clean energy by 2050. In adherence with the directives of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, DEWA launched the largest Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) project in the world, based on the IPP model, with a planned capacity of 1,000 MW by 2030. The project is the largest of its kind based on the IPP model. DEWA has developed its model for electricity and water services at the highest levels of performance, efficiency, productivity, and excellence, to compete at the highest international standards,” said Al Tayer.
“We will also be implementing the Hassyan clean coal power plant in compliance with the IPP model, which will generate 2,400MW. This is also the first project of its kind in the region, and will be developed according to the highest international standards. DEWA has also awarded a contract for the turnkey construction of the expansion of M-Station at Jebel Ali. The project is worth AED1.47 billion, and will be completed on 30 April 2018. M-Station is the newest and largest power production and desalination plant in the UAE, with a current total capacity of 2,060MW of electricity and 140 million imperial gallons of water per day (MIGD). The expansion project includes new power generation units with a capacity of 700MW to be added to the current capacity of the station to eventually produce 2,760MW by 2018,” added Al Tayer.
DEWA’s Sustainable Building is the largest government building in the world to receive a Platinum Rating for green buildings (LEED). The building saves 66% of energy consumption and has a solar power plant with a capacity of 660 kilowatts (kW). It also reduces water consumption by 48%,” continued Al Tayer.
“DEWA works to provide the best government services by adopting the best international practices, to achieve the happiness of its customers. We aim to develop our performance and efficiency to meet the highest standards. Our pioneering achievements include DEWA’s three smart initiatives, which are Shams Dubai, to integrate solar power into buildings. The second initiative, Smart Meters, will be installed into private and public spaces. These meters provide automatic and detailed readings of individual consumption, enabling end users to better understand and manage their personal DEWA bills. The third initiative, EV Green Charger, involves establishing infrastructure to charge electric vehicles.
These initiatives contribute to creating a smarter future for citizens and residents, and support our efforts to achieve the sustainable development of Dubai,” said Al Tayer.
“In terms of benchmarking, we will highlight DEWA’s competitive results, which have surpassed leading European and American companies by reducing losses in power transmission and distribution networks to 3.3%, compared to 6-7% in Europe and the USA. Water network losses decreased to 8.2%, compared to 15% in North America, achieving global results in reducing water losses. DEWA’s results are among the best internationally for customer minutes lost per year. DEWA’s figures reached 3.87 minutes, compared to 15 minutes recorded by leading utilities in the European Union,” added Al Tayer.
DEWA has launched a number of initiatives focused on energy conservation, while working to strengthen environmental sustainability in the Emirate. DEWA has managed to save 1,344 gigawatts (GW) of electricity, and 5.6 billion imperial gallons of water, saving AED 841 million, and limiting carbon dioxide emissions by over 715,000 tonnes,” concluded Al Tayer.