DP World launches crowdfunding initiative for retrofitting scheme

Ports operator signs agreement with Dubai Carbon to improve energy efficiency of warehouses

Dubai Carbon has enjoyed success with its rooftop solar projects. Jaime Puebla / The National

UAE ports operator DP World is to launch a crowdfunding project with Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence to help retrofit warehouses in Dubai's Mina Rashid port.

DP World has teamed up with Dubai Carbon to launch the initiative, under which UAE residents will reap returns generated through installing solar energy at four industrial sheds.

Using an online crowdfunding platform, UAE residents will be able to invest in a total of 3,000 kilowatts of solar energy, a statement from Dubai Carbon said.

Investors will attain a return through the kilowatt hours generated from the project, at an estimated rate of 40 per cent over a ten-year period, the statement added.

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Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising small amounts of money from a large number of people, usually online.

The Mina Rashid project is one of several initiatives undertaken by Dubai Carbon to encourage use of ‘green finance’ — which means any financial tool or instrument that funds methods of carbon reduction.

Ivano Iannelli, chief executive of Dubai Carbon, said crowdfunding represents an increasingly important source of financing for the renewables sector, and described the project with DP World as the first of its kind in the region.

The project is also part of DP World’s Solar Power Programme, designed to more broadly adopt solar energy techniques across its portfolio. “We’ve provided four sheds on which to install solar panels and [Dubai Carbon] is taking the project to a crowdfunding platform, allowing a range of investors to finance an important development towards positive economic and societal change,” said Nabil Battal, global HSE director at DP World Global.

He added: “At DP World, our approach is forward-thinking and long term — we are investing in technology, people and partnerships to lead the future of world trade.”