UAE’s Abu Dhabi opens ESCO registration
The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (DED) has announced that it has opened registration for Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) interested in operating in the UAE capital.
The move is being carried out under the Tarsheed programme of the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA) and in association with the UAE Ministry of Economy.
According to state news agency WAM, the registration is in support of energy performance contracting, the implementation of which is designed to reduce water and electricity consumption in existing government, commercial, and institutional buildings.
Dr Saif Al Seiari, acting director-general at ADWEA, said the registration was launched under the Kafa’ati initiative of the Demand Side Management of the Tarsheed programme, unveiled during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2017.
The Tarsheed Commercial/Governmental/Institutional Cooling and Lighting Replacement initiative, meanwhile, is an integrated programme that will be launched soon to help building owners obtain competitive bids from ESCOs and adopt energy improvements without upfront capital investment.
The Kafa’ati initiative can purportedly bring about more than 445,000MWh/year in electricity savings and the equivalent of a medium-sized power plant in demand.
The initiative will also form a work plan for replacing all electrical devices, such as HVAC equipment, lighting systems, elevators, and water pumps, with energy-efficient alternatives that comply with the standards and specifications mandated by authorities like the Emirates Authority For Standardisation and Metrology (ESMA), the Estidama programme of the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council, the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council, and the Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport.
WAM, said ADWEA, has organised a workshop to share with interested companies the details of the requirements and the process involved in becoming registered and submitting tenders for building retrofits using the performance contracting approach.
