Supreme-Council-of-Energy-and-DEWA-participate-in-6th-Desert-Energy-Leadership-Summit

The Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) have participated in the 6th Desert Energy Leadership Summit, which began on Tuesday 3 November under the patronage of HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Energy and concludes today in Emirates Towers, Dubai. The summit, organised by the Desertec Industrial Initiative, brought together officials and decision-makers from the public and private sectors from around the world. These include Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power, Germany’s RWE, and the State Grid Corporation of China. HE Ahmed Buti Al Muhairbi, Secretary General of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy gave on behalf of HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Vice Chairman of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and MD & CEO of DEWA, saying that the UAE, under the leadership of HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is dedicated to diversifying its energy mix and increasing its share of renewable and clean energy. “According to the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century 2014 report, the UAE ranked third worldwide behind Spain and the USA in the generation of concentrated solar power (CSP). Our wise leadership is pursuing excellence to achieve a vision that recognises the significance of renewable energy in achieving a balance between development and sustainability. This balance will help preserve the rights of future generations to live in a clean, healthy, and safe environment. Led by initiatives such as Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, and the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, the UAE continues to build and invest in mega projects for renewable energy. These projects will contribute to the long-term protection of the environment and the country’s natural resources. The next generation will benefit from these positive steps as we benefit from those of our predecessors who pioneered development while caring for its environment,” he added. The Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030, developed by the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, diversifies Dubai's energy mix to comprise 71% from natural gas, 15% from solar energy, 7% from clean coal, and 7% from nuclear power. DEWA is implementing a series of major renewables projects, in cooperation with the private sector. The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is the largest single-site solar energy project in the world, and will produce 3,000MW by 2030. The project will help achieve a reduction of approximately 400,000 tonnes of carbon emissions by 2020 and support the green initiatives and programmes outlined by the Government of Dubai to reduce carbon emissions. DEWA’s vision supports the long-term national Green Economy for Sustainable Development initiative, launched by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to establish the UAE as a world leader in green economy and a centre for the export and re-export of green products and technologies. “Solar power is connected to DEWA’s grid in two ways. The first is from DEWA’s own solar power plants and the second is electricity produced from photovoltaic panels installed on rooftops of buildings and connected to the grid as part of the Shams Dubai initiative. Shams Dubai was pioneered by DEWA, in support of the Smart Dubai initiative, launched by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the smartest city in the world. The initiative allows customers to install photovoltaic panels on their rooftops. The energy generated can be used by the customer, while any excess energy is exported to DEWA's grid,” he noted. “Every hour the sun beams more than enough energy to satisfy global power demands for an entire year. God has granted us with a region that is sunny every day, and taking advantage of this is a strategic necessity. In addition to being a clean and inexhaustible natural source of energy, the costs of producing solar power have decreased in recent years, while photovoltaic technology has improved significantly. These factors have encouraged us to increase renewable energy within Dubai’s energy mix. This will help us achieve the goals of the Dubai Plan 2021 to make Dubai a clean, healthy and sustainable city whose environmental elements are clean, healthy, and sustainable,” he added. “In Dubai, and the UAE, we do not rest on our laurels. Instead, we constantly work to develop our operations at all levels. HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum once observed that: “Success is not a destination, but a journey. Each time that you reach a summit in this journey, you must look ahead to the next one.” Innovation is a key enabler of long-term success in the clean energy sector. DEWA’s continued adoption of innovation across all its operations, has helped it to achieve excellent energy efficiency. From 2006 to 2014, DEWA managed to improve the ratio of production efficiency for electricity and water to 28.36%. DEWA has also surpassed major European and American utilities companies in the performance of its transmission networks. Losses in power transmission and distribution networks were reduced to 3.26%, compared to 6-7% in Europe and the USA. Water network losses decreased to around 9%, compared to 15% in North America. The UAE, represented by DEWA, has been ranked fourth globally and first in the Middle East and North Africa, for the third consecutive year, for getting electricity in the World Bank’s Doing Business 2016 report,” he said. “I hope that this summit will cultivate excellent outcomes that smooth our transition towards using clean and renewable energy – in the UAE and worldwide - so that we may all enjoy a clean and sustainable environment for generations to come,” he concluded.