Abu Dhabi Distribution Company (ADDC) signed today, March 12, 2018, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with MPM Properties, the real estate advisory subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), aimed to reduce water and electricity consumption. According to the agreement, the two parties are teaming up to implement building retrofit contracts aimed at improving the efficiency of more than 1400 commercial and residential buildings managed by MPM. The contracts will be placed with Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) who will assess the current efficiency of the buildings, implement a range of energy and water savings measures and be paid as a result of the bill savings achieved. This work is part of the Kafa'ati ("My Efficiency") initiative of the Tarsheed Demand Side Management program unveiled by DoE (ADWEA previously), ADDC and AADC during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2017, which aims to slash 20% of the emirate's consumption of electricity and water by 2030.
H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al Suwaidi, ADDC's Managing Director, and Mr. Khalid Ali Al Mansoori, Executive Chairman of MPM Properties, signed the agreement in the presence of a large number of officials representing both sides. Al Suwaidi said; "This agreement is in line with the directives of our leadership and Abu Dhabi 2020 Vision aimed at conserving water and electricity and reducing the UAE's environmental footprint for the benefit of posterity". He added, "MPM Properties is one of the largest real estate service providers in the emirate, managing more than 1400 commercial buildings. This agreement with them will give a great boost to our strategy to help ensure efficient water and electricity consumption in the emirate".
Furthermore, Al Mansoori reassured that MPM Properties is keen on enhancing customers' awareness about the importance of energy saving and water efficiency and maintaining a sustainable lifestyle that contributes to the environment preservation and supports UAE 2021 vision towards a sustainable development.
The Tarsheed programme features a number of technical conservation initiatives including "Kafa'ati", which focuses primarily on air conditioning & lighting, the two main end uses of electricity in commercial and residential buildings.
In accordance with the agreement, ADDC will issue water and electricity conservation best practice manuals to be adopted for the commercial buildings, collect consumption data to assess buildings' suitability for retrofit contracts and analyse meter readings of the retrofitted buildings to measure the savings and ensure the effectiveness of the changes.
MPM Properties will conduct initial assessment of their buildings and submit the results to ADDC, as well as educating the building owners and tenants on the importance of the retrofit contracts. They will also be calling ESCOs for tenders and will submit periodical reports on the project progress to ADDC.
The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (DED), in association with DoE (ADWEA previously) and the Ministry of Economy, has previously announced that it has opened registration for Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) interested in operating in the UAE capital who wish to participate in this initiative.