100,000 buildings in UAE to be managed by remote energy control systems in the next 5 years

United Arab Emirates, April 13, 2013 - Etisalat and Pacific Controls plans to manage energy usage remotely in 100,000 buildings in the UAE within the next five years to save up to 20% in the energy consumption, according to the CEO of Pacific Controls that is specialized in green buildings solutions.

Nandi said to “Al Etihad” the services of managing energy usage remotely in residential and commercial buildings is done through the "Emirates Energy Star" program that was launched by Etisalat and Pacific Controls. He added that the program focuses on improving energy efficiency in existing buildings, which contributes to the reduction of carbon emissions through the use of "technical communication among devices" known as (M2M). The program is based on an automated communication technology between the control systems installed in buildings and the Global Command Control Center (GCCC) that has achieved the highest growth rate for any energy conservation program in the world.

Nandi pointed out that the number of buildings joined the program until the end of first quarter of this year amounted to 68 government and private buildings,compared to two buildings only during the same period last year. The number of projects and facilities that have joined the program to control energy usage remotely is distributed as 46 buildings in Dubai, 9 in Abu Dhabi, 6 in Sharjah, 2 in Fujairah, 4 in Ajman and one building in Umm Al Quwain.

The list of projects bound for the program in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi includes Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC), Ministry of Justice, United Arab Emirates University, the headquarters of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, MUSANADA and First Gulf Bank. In Dubai, buildings belonging to companies such as AW Rostamani, Deyaar, Diamond Developers have joined “Emirates Energy Star” program. Nandi explained that government buildings topped the projects that joined "Emirates Energy Star" program with a total of 17 buildings, while the real estate sector came in second place with a total of 14 buildings, and the banking sector in third place with a total of 11 buildings.

Nandi pointed out that Etisalat and Pacific Controls are planning to connect 100,000 buildings in the UAE within the next five years, 30% of which are in Abu Dhabi, as in Dubai, and 40% in the rest of the Emirates. He predicted that the number of buildings joining the program will reach 500 buildings by the end of this year in conjunction with the increased awareness of the importance of the use of energy control systems in the facilities, which save up to 20% of the value of the electricity bills.

He added that the statistics that is specialized in the field of energy indicates that buildings in the UAE consumes more than 70% of the energy that is produced, mainly due to the load of HVAC and lighting in these buildings, pointing out that the “Emirates Energy Star” program contributes to raising the efficiency of energy consumption in the country.

Etisalat customers of building owners,contractors, real estate companies, government institutions, and infrastructure owners such as utilities & airports can cooperate and benefit from "Emirates Energy Star" program using Etisalat network and Pacific Control's “Global Command Control Center” to enhance the efficiency of their operations. The program works by collecting information about the property and analyzing it to know the condition of the building, equipment, strengths and weaknesses, thus contributing to the evaluating maintenance programs, the required improvement, effective management of the facility and stimulate investment returns.

He said that building owners could recover the value of their investments within 24 months of the total savings that are achieved after reducing the consumption of electricity, water and gas. The property owner can pay this cost in monthly installments for a period of 24 months, while getting warranty work and maintenance of the system for 15 years, during which benefit from a huge savings in energy consumption.

Positive results for sustainability legislation in Abu Dhabi

The CEO of "Pacific Controls" said the issue binding legislation provides for the adoption of green building standards in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, which have been applied two years ago led to a significant growth in the market for sustainable development in the Emirate.

He noted that the improvement in the level of public awareness of the importance of sustainable technologies in the field of buildings and construction on the regional and local levels alike after the companies providing green buildings services had successfully developed environmental friendly solutions and achieved large savings in the cost energy consumed.

He noted that green buildings saves 25% in the energy consumed by HVAC system, 100% of the lighting during day time and 20% in water consumption to reach an average overall savings of 30%. He pointed the positive effects of sustainable buildings at the level of the overall economy in general, where it contributes to reducing the carbon emission, improve the quality of the environment, increase the life span of individuals , improve the overall health of a community that contributes to raising productivity and support the economy in various sectors.

Al Ittihad (Arabic press report)
United Arab Emirates

< back