Etihad Esco targets Dh1.4m savings for UAE cable manufacturer Ducab

Dubai's energy services company is eyeing Dh500 million worth of savings by 2030 from multimillion dollar projects

Ducab, which will open a new head office in Jebel Ali in December has plans for further phases for the solar-power energy efficiency scheme. Pawan Singh / The National

UAE cable maker Ducab is aiming to achieve energy savings of up to Dh1.4 million with the development of a 1.3 megawatt solar project to be installed on rooftops at the company's facilities in Jebel Ali.

The scheme is being developed in conjunction with Dubai's energy services company, Etihad Esco.

"We have committed to do our first phase of a solar project. We've got good land at a site in Jebel Ali. So we'll be doing 1.3MW of solar PV [photovoltaic] that is the first phase of a possible seven or eight phases on that site," Ducab managing director Andrew Shaw told The National. The cable manufacturing company, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi's industrial holding Senaat, will open a new office in Jebel Ali in December.

The first phase, expected to be completed in eight months, is set to generate annual energy savings of 3,251,900 kilowatt hours, equivalent to Dh1.4m, Ducab said.

Energy efficiency programmes have gained traction in the Middle East, with the UAE and Saudi Arabia looking to generate higher energy savings.

Etihad Esco set targets of 20 per cent energy savings on its Dubai projects by 2021 and 30 per cent by 2030. Initial targets have been exceeded, though plans are under way to revise them. Etihad Esco is eyeing Dh500m worth of energy savings by 2030 from multimillion dollar projects, primarily from retrofitting and solar rooftop installations.

Known as a "Super Esco" for its role as an accreditor and regulator of companies engaged in the sector, Etihad Esco has been considering industry-specific objectives for the emirate by 2021, starting with its logistics sector, its chief executive Ali Al Jassim said in April.

Dubai has achieved savings of about Dh1.2 billion over the past decade due to its efforts to conserve electricity and water, according to Dubai Electricity and Water Authority. Plans are in place to reduce carbon emissions by 16 per cent by 2021 and energy and water use by 30 per cent by 2030.

Ducab will utilise cables specifically designed for solar power generation in its energy efficiency scheme.

Ducab, which supplies cables and rods for large UAE projects such as the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Solar Park and the Barakah nuclear power plant, is diversifying into more specialised products, supplying international clients in the wind, solar and nuclear sectors.