Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) | World Energy Day

World Energy Day on 22 October every year, is an initiative endorsed by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, during the World Energy Forum that was held in Dubai in 2012. This endorsement was made in the presence of representatives of 54 countries, in addition to the UN, Arab League and African Union Commission, through the ‘Dubai Declaration of Energy for All’ on 22 October 2012. His Highness’s futuristic vision plays a fundamental role in cooperation between local and international public and private organisations. This cooperation aims to strengthen sustainable development, renewable energy and sustainability infrastructure, raise energy efficiency, and raise awareness in society on the importance of conservation.

World Energy Day underlines the importance of renewable energy as the main pillar of sustainability and a strategic priority for the UAE, which leads proactive efforts in adopting innovation to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change and global warming. This consolidates the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030. The UAE has taken early steps to bid farewell to the last barrel of oil, and balance development and the preservation of a healthy and clean environment.

The UAE’s efforts in this area have been crowned with ranking among the top ten players in energy efficiency, in recognition by the UN for the comprehensive development in the UAE.  This is supported by diversification of resources, a strong infrastructure, and leadership in clean energy to create a green economy. The UAE has won international leadership positions in the competitiveness indicators of the energy sector in general, and clean energy in particular, after seven international references agreed to classify it among the top 10 countries in the world with 18 sector-specific indicators in 2020. The UAE, represented by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), has maintained its first global ranking for the third consecutive year, with scores of 100% in all Getting Electricity indicators in the World Bank’s Doing Business 2020 report.

“We have a clear strategy and objectives to increase the use of clean and renewable energy in the energy mix of Dubai. This is in accordance with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to promote sustainable development. Dubai is a pioneer in the transition towards a green economy through two parallel courses of action. The first is to reduce energy and water demand by 30% by 2030 by promoting efficiency and conservation programmes. In contrast, the second is improving the supply side by diversifying the energy mix, especially clean energy, increasing the efficiency and reducing the power and water network losses. World Energy Day is one of the UAE’s contributions to the world to achieve sustainable development. It is an opportunity to prioritise developing national energy policies that support sustainable development to overcome current and future challenges facing the energy sector. It also supports policies for implementing and developing mechanisms and frameworks for the exchange of experiences among all countries, as well as the acceleration towards renewable energy, and encouraging its responsible and rational use to protect the environment, reduce carbon emissions and preserve our precious natural resources,” added HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum.

In his statement on the World Energy Day, His Excellency Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure in the United Arab Emirates, said: The UAE have developed a set of future plans aimed at diversifying energy sources and moving towards clean ones, especially nuclear power. The operation of the Barakah Peaceful Nuclear Energy Plant will move forward with efforts to shift towards clean energy in the country, ensuring energy sustainability, diversity and security for decades to come.The UAE also follows a long-term approach to planning for the future of energy and reducing emissions, which prompted us to launch the UAE Energy Strategy 2050 to raise the efficiency of individual and institutional consumption by 40%, and raise the contribution of clean energy in the total mix of energy produced in the country to 50%, as well as to ensure meeting energy demand and sustaining growth in the country's economy.”

“Clean energy is an essential pillar of sustainability, and stands at the forefront of the UAE’s strategic priorities and directions; Especially that the UAE leads the efforts to adopt the latest innovations that address climate change, mitigate the effects of global warming.” added Al Mazrouei.

“We are guided by the vision of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to make Dubai a global model for clean energy and green economy through adopting Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies and disruptive technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)s, Energy Storage, Blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT) and others. DEWA is committed to innovating proactive solutions for the next 50 years and achieving the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, which aims to provide 75% of Dubai’s total power capacity from clean energy sources. The installed capacity of clean energy in Dubai has reached 9% of the energy mix in 2020 which is 2% more than the target for 2020. One of our key projects to achieve this is the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world with a planned capacity of 5,000 MW by 2030. Solar power capacity in operation at the Solar Park has reached 1,310 MW using solar photovoltaic panels and will reach 13.3% of the total production capacity on several stages until Q1 of next year,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Vice Chairman of the DSCE, MD & CEO of DEWA.

“We have also the green hydrogen production project using solar energy, Hatta hydroelectric power plant, as well as the using wind energy projects. DEWA’s installed capacity of electricity has reached 13,200 MW and 490 MIGD. We strive to spread awareness of the importance of conservation. DEWA’s conservation programmes and initiatives from 2009 to 2020 achieved cumulative savings of 2.6 terrawatthours (TWh) of electricity and 8.5 billion gallons of water. This is equivalent to saving AED 1.5 billion and reducing 1.136 million tonnes of carbon emissions,” added Al Tayer.

“World Energy Day aims to support policies that improve energy efficiency in various vital sectors, as well as enhance sustainability and increase energy efficiency within the framework of urban and regional planning. This day is an opportunity to remember the importance of energy in our lives and its impact on all aspects of our economic, social and environmental development, and to emphasise concerted efforts between organisations and society to work closely to protect our environment, rationalise energy consumption and reduce carbon emissions; to preserve our natural resources and ensure their sustainability,,” said Al Tayer.

HE Saeed Al Suwaidi, Chairman of Sharjah Electricity, Water and Gas Authority (SEWA), highlighted that the wise leadership in the UAE in general and the Emirate of Sharjah in particular adopts a unique vision for the energy sector and its pivotal role in the future of sustainable development, based on overcoming challenges, studying changes in demand and consumption, and taking advantage of future opportunities. This vision is based on employing advanced technology, increasing energy efficiency, implementing ambitious projects to increase production and ensure continuity of supplies, and develop transmission and distribution systems and networks to enhance energy security, which has become a pivotal factor in progress and civilizational advancement. His Excellency Al Suwaidi noted that SEWA is working to implement the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, to meet the increasing demand for electric power in Sharjah via the SEWA 2030 Roadmap aimed at boosting the installed power generation capacity in Sharjah to 4,600 megawatts through implementing two projects to expand the Hamriyah and Al Layyah power plants, among Sharjah's most ambitious projects in the production of high efficiency power, which contribute to meeting the rapidly growing demand for energy in the Emirate. The Hamriyah Independent Power Plant (IPP) is the first independent combined-cycle power plant in Sharjah and the most efficient power plant in the Middle East's utilities sector. The 1,800MW Hamriyah IPP consists of three combined cycle blocks, with the first unit being operational since April 2021 and expectations to reach full commercial operations by May 2023. Al Layyah Power Plant, on the other hand, consists of two gas turbines with a capacity of 345 MW each, in addition to two heat recovery boilers and a steam turbine with a capacity of 336 MW, so that the total efficiency of the project is 1026 megawatt. The operation of the first gas turbine will start in November 2021, and the project will be completed in July 2022, and after the completion of the project, 17 old electricity production units with a total capacity of 900 MW will be replaced at Al Layyah plant. These projects contribute to achieving the objectives of the https://u.ae/ar-ae/about-the-uae/strategies-initiatives-and-awards/federal-governments-strategies-and-plans/uae-energy-strategy-2050 to reduce carbon emissions and reinforce SEWA's continued commitment to providing the necessary electric energy at competitive prices to meet the needs and reduce the environmental impact of power generation operations.

“On World Energy Day and in line with the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, we highlight the importance of strengthening collaboration between the public and private sectors to enhance green investments, support innovation, find long-term sustainable solutions, increasing the focus on AI and advanced technologies to enhance sustainability and energy efficiency. This helps overcome current and future challenges facing the energy sector and balancing between development and the environment to preserve the next generation’s right to enjoy a clean, healthy and safe environment. This also continues Dubai’s leading role in reducing carbon emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change through increasing the use of clean and renewable energy to make Dubai a global hub for clean energy and green economy,” said HE Ahmad Al Muhairbi, Secretary-General of the DSCE.