Dewa breaks ground on largest solar-powered data centre in the Middle East and Africa

The carbon-neutral space will use 100 per cent renewable energy with a capacity exceeding 100 megawatts

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, managing director and chief executive of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, and Steven Yi, president of Huawei Middle East & Africa, have broken ground for the first phaseShow more

The digital arm of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) broke ground for the first phase of the largest solar-powered data centre in the Middle East and Africa, as the emirate strives to build its green economy and focus on sustainable development.

The centre will be implemented by Moro Hub (Data Hub Integrated Solutions LLC), a subsidiary of Digital Dewa, the digital arm of Dewa, at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, Moro said. The carbon-neutral green data centre will use 100 per cent renewable energy with a capacity exceeding 100 megawatts.

"Breaking ground for the largest green data centre in the Middle East and Africa confirms that we are on the right track to achieve the goals of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Emissions Strategy 2050 to provide 100 per cent of energy from clean energy sources by 2050, as well as the Dubai Demand Side Management Strategy, which aims to reduce electricity and water demand by 30 per cent by 2030," Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, managing director and chief executive of Dewa, said.

The green data centre will help organisations in their sustainability initiatives to reduce their carbon footprint, Mr Al Tayer said.

The new facility is the second solar-powered green data centre in Dubai launched by Moro Hub. It will offer digital products and services using Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies, such as cloud services, the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

The ground-breaking ceremony was attended by officials and executives, including Steven Yi, president of Huawei Middle East & Africa.

“Data is quickly becoming the new engine for economic expansion and diversification. As more data centre facilities are established in the future, this project serves as an exemplar of combining digital and power electronic technologies to create greener, low-carbon ICT infrastructure powered through renewable energy.

"We are committed to contributing towards carbon neutrality worldwide and very proud to be working with Moro Hub, in what is truly a landmark project for the region in this regard,” Mr Yi said.

Dewa, the state-backed utility of the UAE's commercial hub, plans to list on the Dubai Financial Market, becoming among 10 state-backed companies to be floated as part of plans to boost activity on the local bourse.