Uptown Dubai is a smart, mixed-use district. (Image source: Empower)

Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation PJSC (Empower) has signed an agreement with Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) to supply 24,675 refrigeration tons (RT) of environmentally friendly district cooling services to the next phase of Uptown Dubai.  

Uptown Dubai is a smart, mixed-use district, featuring eight planned towers along with retail, dining, luxury hospitality, and sustainable community spaces.

Following the successful completion of Uptown Tower, the next phase will introduce two grade A commercial towers. Strategically located at the southern end of the city, the district offers seamless access to Dubai’s key landmarks and business hubs.

Protecting the environment

Empower’s JLT District Cooling project, which serves the area, consists of four plants—three of which are currently operational—with a total designed capacity of 152,000 RT.

These plants are integrated with advanced infrastructure, smart production systems, and a comprehensive pipeline network, ensuring efficient cooling solutions for current and future developments.

The expansion reinforces Empower’s commitment to sustainable and high-performance district cooling, bolstering investor and developer confidence in its environmentally friendly services.  

H.E. Ahmad Bin Shafar, CEO of Empower, emphasised the significance of the partnership, stating, "We are proud to sign this agreement with DMCC to supply the next phase of Uptown Dubai with environmentally friendly district cooling services. This partnership reflects our commitment to providing innovative and sustainable district cooling solutions that help reducing carbon emissions and support the UAE’s national sustainability goals."

He added that Empower is currently serving the first phase of the project, including the iconic Uptown Tower, with environmentally friendly district cooling services, delivering a cooling capacity of 3,850 RT in compliance with international standards.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman and CEO, DMCC, said, "One year ago, we broke ground on Phase 2 of Uptown Dubai, marking a major milestone in the district’s development with the construction of two premium commercial towers. With new residential towers announced and the imminent launch of the Atrium, Plaza, and vibrant F&B offerings, Uptown Dubai is rapidly taking shape as a world-class destination. Our partnership with Empower is a crucial step in this journey, ensuring the seamless delivery of sustainable cooling solutions that both support our vision for a smart urban community and enhance the quality of life for our residents and visitors."

Only 9% of hydrogen projects have reached FID. (image source: Adobe Stock)

A new report from the UK’s Energy Industries Council (EIC) finds that energy industry confidence in reaching global net-zero targets is declining sharply, with policy instability, financial uncertainty and slow project approvals cited as obstacles to progress

Only 16% of senior energy executives interviewed for the EIC’s Net Zero Jeopardy Report II now believe the world can achieve net zero by 2050, down from 45% last year, with growing concerns over the lack of clear regulatory frameworks, underinvestment in clean technologies and delays in bringing projects to the final investment decision (FID) stage. Only 14% of respondents believe their country will meet 2030 climate goals, down from 16% in last year’s report. Globally, 5% believe interim targets will be met, compared to 11% a year ago.

A key issue is financing, with investors cautious about backing new clean technologies, particularly in sectors such as hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, and grid infrastructure. Executives say that while the private sector is willing to invest, the absence of long-term, stable policies creates financial risk.

The report points out that rates for clean energy projects remain very low. Despite ambitious targets, only 10% of offshore wind projects and 9% of hydrogen projects have reached FID, compared to 21% for upstream oil and gas. In the UK offshore wind sector, for example, lengthy permitting processes, grid access constraints and an uncertain investment climate are factors behind the slow pace of new projects moving from planning to construction.

Supply chain vulnerabilities

The report also highlights concern about supply chain vulnerabilities, particularly in clean technology manufacturing and logistics, pointing out that the reliance on China for many renewable energy project components raises concerns about energy security, trade policy, and supply chain resilience. There are also concerns about manufacturing capacity and skills availability.

“The energy industry is facing real challenges in turning pledges into projects,” said Stuart Broadley, EIC CEO. “Business leaders are not seeing the level of policy certainty or investment required to deliver net-zero ambitions. We need a lot of immediate reforms that speed up licensing processing and cut other red tape, ensure consistent policy and regulation, have the right financial incentives.”

“The data leaves no room for optimism—confidence in net-zero targets is collapsing across the energy sector,” said Mahmoud Habboush, author of the Net Zero Jeopardy II report. “Industry leaders are not merely expressing frustration, they are passionately warning about fundamental barriers, including unstable policy, weak investment appetite, and slow project approvals. And these barriers, if left without tackling, will no doubt derail the energy transition.”

“For many, one clear path toward net zero is ensuring that energy projects are commercially viable. For that to happen, work needs to be done on the demand side, including facilitating a regulatory environment conducive to creating demand. This will make banks less apprehensive, and more capital will flow.”

It is hoped this collaboration will catalyse pioneering geothermal energy solutions in Saudi Arabia. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Geothermal energy development in Saudi Arabia is set to advance with the signing of an MoU by EDF Saudi Arabia and TAQA Geothermal Energy Company to collaborate on geothermal energy technologies

These will include power generation and HVAC applications as well as compressed air energy storage in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia aims to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2060, and has set the goal of sourcing at least 50% of its power from renewable energy by 2030.

Geothermal energy, which harnesses the heat produced from the Earth's crust and converts it to cooling, heating, desalination, or direct electricity generation, is a renewable and sustainable form of energy.

Growing Saudi energy

It has the advantage of being a constant and reliable energy source compared to other renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, given it is not affected by seasonal or weather variations.

Saudi Arabia has vast geothermal energy resources, in particular along the Red Sea coast, home to volcanic fields and hot springs.

TAQA Geothermal, a joint venture between Taqa Energy and Reykjavik Geothermal (RG) is playing a leading role in pursuing opportunities to explore, assess, and develop geothermal resources in the kingdom and the region with the ultimate target of adding 1GW of sustainable geothermally produced energy to the energy mix.

EDF Saudi Arabia operates in the areas of thermal, renewables, district cooling, and energy efficiency, with a focus on aligning its R&D efforts with the strategic objectives of the Saudi Arabian government and Vision 2030.

Omar Aldaweesh, CEO of EDF Saudi Arabia, said, “Over the past decade, we have been actively contributing to the Kingdom’s energy landscape through our expertise in sustainable solutions, and this MoU further strengthens our role in advancing innovative technologies. By collaborating with TAQA Geothermal, we are leveraging our extensive experience to explore new frontiers in geothermal energies and compressed air energy storage. This initiative is fully aligned with both Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and EDF’s Ambitions 2035, reinforcing our shared commitment to sustainability and to the country’s transition to a cleaner energy future.”

Meshary Alayed, CEO of TAQA Geothermal, added, “Geothermal energy utilisation whether via direct heat use or electricity generation is a critical and untapped resource to drive the global transition to clean energy, as it is a reliable, renewable base load resource. The partnership between EDF and TAQA Geothermal in the field of geothermal solutions redefining space cooling, will have tremendous positive impacts on efficiency and carbon footprint reduction. The combined strengths will demonstrate cutting-edge geothermal cooling systems for the Kingdom’s growing energy needs while supporting Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 in economic diversification and the Ministry of Energy’s renewable energy mandates.”

It is hoped this collaboration will catalyse pioneering geothermal energy solutions in Saudi Arabia, paving the way for cleaner and more efficient power and cooling technologies.