ABU DHABI // Scientists will head into the clouds over the UAE to find new methods of increasing the country’s rainfall.
By studying the way ice is produced in clouds, teams with the UAE Research Programme for Rain Enhancement Science are hoping to find a new approach to addressing water scarcity.
“I am confident that a better understanding of how we might manipulate the ice production process in clouds could enhance the range of techniques we already have at our disposal to boost rainfall, ” said Dr Paul Lawson, who will head the project.
Dr Lawson, one of the winners of this year’s UAE Rain Enhancement Programme US$5 million (Dh18.37m) award, will investigate ice production in cumulus clouds.
Current cloud-seeding methods involve increasing rain by releasing pure salt crystal, silver iodide, potassium iodide or dry ice into the air, which helps to change the processes within the cloud.
Dr Lawson – who founded the American firm Spec Inc, which produces airborne cloud physics instruments in Boulder, Colorado – was recently visited by a team from the UAE research programme as part of their US visit.
With the programme playing a major role in the field’s progress, Dr Lawson said he was grateful it was taking his project forward.
Alya Al Mazroui, manager of the programme, said meeting US researchers and organisations would help further the UAE’s goal of becoming a leader in water security.
“Our visit to our research colleagues in Washington and Boulder has given us an excellent opportunity to consolidate our already strong links with the weather research and forecasting innovation community in the United States,” said Ms Al Mazroui.
The team’s visit to Washington included meetings with IBM, the World Bank, the National Academy of Sciences and Nasa, as well as figures from US Committee on Science, Space and Technology.
The UAE’s water primarily comes from groundwater resources and desalinated water. Consumption is estimated to exceed 24 times the natural recharge capacity.
The rain enhancement industry is on the rise globally and UAE is one of more than 50 countries with active cloud-seeding operations, according to the World Meteorological Organisation.
Cloud-seeding companies in Europe guarantee good weather for occasions such as weddings for a fee of US$150,000.
tsubaihi@thenational.ae
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Dust storm
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
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Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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Power: 400hp
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
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Based: Riyadh
Sector: Software
Employees: 150
Amount raised: $8m through seed and Series A - Series B raise ongoing
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Stage Two:
1. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 04:20:45
2. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix
3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates
4. Olav Kooij (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
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1. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix 09:03:03
2. Dmitry Strakhov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:04
3. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 00:00:06
4. Sam Bennett (IRL) Bora-Hansgrohe 00:00:10
5. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates 00:00:12