Empower commissions Business Bay Executive Towers District Cooling Plant

Empower commissions Business Bay Executive Towers District Cooling Plant

World class plant geared up to supply chilled water to Business Bay and surrounding developments

Dubai: 6th October, 2009 – Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower) today announced that it has commissioned the 45,000 refrigeration tonne (RT) district cooling plant for the Business Bay Executive Towers (BBET), a mixed use community development within Business Bay. The world class plant started supplying chilled water to the area since 7th June 2009

Ahmed Bin Shafar, CEO of Empower, said: “Business Bay Executive Towers is expected to be one of the busiest and dynamic business spots of Dubai. International quality standards were adopted in commissioning this significant plant. The plant will supply not only the 11 towers of this development, but also other developments at the Business Bay at phase one and two project serving through a 6 – 7 Km long network.”

“As district cooling is beginning to gain wider recognition in the region, we are optimistic about our growth prospects. The Business Bay project further consolidates our position as the largest district cooling companies in the region,” said Bin Shafar.

Empower, a joint venture between TECOM Investments and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), provides energy-efficient district cooling services to large-scale real estate developments. It currently, provides 250,000 refrigeration tonnes (RT) to a wide array of projects in
Dubai, including Dubai International Financial Center, Dubai Healthcare City, Jumeirah Beach Residence and City Of Arabia, in addition to Business Bay.

Bin Shafar added: “District cooling systems (DCS) achieves economies of scale by using centralised plants instead of individual cooling units in each building. The centralised system results in reduced capital and operating costs, thus reducing air-conditioning set-up and energy costs per building.”

Bin Shafar added: “Commissioning is vital to ensure a seamless implementation of the project until the completion phase. It is a matter of pride that this project will be completed in time and within budget and this where commissioning fits in.”

Bin Shafar added: “Effective commissioning was essential to provide clarity to the required jobs and exactly what everyone needs to do. The commissioning process was well defined and simple for everyone involved.
We kept up to date records of the progress, which helps the contractors focus on issues that need attention.”

Comprising 11 towers including 9 residential towers, a commercial development, and the Business Bay Hotel, The Executive Towers is the first phase that has been launched in the multi-billion dollar Business Bay development. Empower has finished the commissioning of the world class plant which will serve the project through the off-site district cooling systems to save up to 35 per cent energy consumption.