Dubai Supreme Council of Energy Workshop on Energy Efficiency

The Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, in cooperation with The Change Initiative, successfully organised a workshop focusing on the exchange of best practices and skills in energy efficiency and zero-energy buildings, which doesn’t consume as much energy as the renewable energy generated onsite. The workshop supported the implementation of the Demand Side Management Strategy to reduce energy demand by 30% by 2030. The strategy includes regulations for green building construction and the move to retrofit over 30,000 existing buildings by 2030 to make buildings more sustainable. The workshop was attended by HE Ahmed Buti Al Muhairbi, Secretary General, Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, Gundeep Singh, Founder and CEO of The Change Initiative, Abdullah Rafee, Assistant GM of Engineering and Planning at Dubai Municipality, Graeme Sims, Executive Director at Dubai's electricity and water regulator, the Regulatory and Supervisory Bureau, Saeed Al Abbar, Chairman of the Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), Mohamed Tarik, Marketing Director at GE Power & Water, Emil Samarah, Chief Commercial Officer at Diamond Developers and Jagath Gunawardena, Senior Manager at the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI). Executive managers and experts in power efficiency and energy and a number of officials from the public and private sectors and non-government organisations also attended. Participants discussed the importance of adopting the green building strategy, which will contribute effectively to the reduction of power and water consumption, as since buildings are the biggest consumer of power in the world these days. “As an organisation responsible for implementing strategies and plans in the energy sector, the Supreme Council of Energy presented its Demand Side Management strategy’s goals to manage power demand, in cooperation with other organisations, including Dubai Municipality. Implementing the standards of green buildings in Dubai will contribute to saving power and water and using it efficiently,” said HE Ahmed Buti Al Muhairbi, Secretary General of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy. “We must always remember that technology is not only a tool, but can also help people do their work better. We hope that all will work together to make Dubai the most sustainable city in the world,” concluded Singh. The workshop also featured discussions about how to refit and improve the energy efficiency of existing buildings in Dubai, which meets with the existing Demand Side Management strategy.