50% reduction on carbon dioxide emissions targeted by 2025: report

/ News & Interviews / Monday, 03 May 2021 12:23

The latest Statement of Future Capacity Requirements Summary Report for Abu Dhabi’s future water and electricity production has been published by Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) and approved by the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy (DoE).

The report forecasts the water and electricity demand for 2021-2027, and sets out the decision-making process regarding the future production capacity requirements for Abu Dhabi and beyond, with recommendations for planning decisions to be taken in the coming year.

In detail, a significant 50 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from a shift towards more sustainable water and electricity production is anticipated by 2025. This is in addition to a major investment program recommended by EWEC in new reverse osmosis (RO) water desalination projects.

Othman Al Ali, Chief Executive Officer of EWEC, said: “At the core of EWEC’s business is sustainable, efficient water and electricity production as we continue to ensure supply security, and the Statement of Future Capacity Requirements Summary Report is a key reference for the likely future of water and electricity requirements. Our strategic decisions to date, and strategic recommendations for the future, show that increasing investments in renewable energy projects will allow us to make a very significant impact in changing the energy sector and prioritizing renewable production technologies. We are the leader in developing solar power projects, and we are looking forward to adding further RO capacity to lead the region in sustainable water production. Combined with the addition of nuclear power to the grid, we can significantly reduce carbon emissions and make the UAE a beacon for sustainable, utility-scale water and energy production.”

The recommendations in the statement have been done by using analytical techno-economic modeling tools across a number of narrative-based scenarios. Moreover, it is forecasted that investment made to date in solar Photovoltaic (PV) projects; clean energy projects such as nuclear energy; and RO desalination coming on-stream in the coming years; will result in dropping CO2 emissions to around 20 million tonnes by 2025 from more than 40 million tonnes in 2020. The investment recommendation includes 170 million gallons per day of new RO desalination capacity to serve existing demand.

Bruce Smith, Forecasting and Planning Director at EWEC, said: “We are committed to supporting the government’s UAE Water Security Strategy 2036 and UAE Energy Strategy 2050 to help it achieve its goals to reduce the energy sector’s carbon footprint. As we forecast water and electricity demands over the coming years, we can see that with strategic investment in renewable and clean energy technologies we can ensure the UAE is on track to continue to reduce its emissions in the energy sector. Importantly, we can also see that increased investment in RO projects means we can lead the region in decoupling water and electricity generation, using significantly less energy-intensive technology to produce water, reduce carbon emissions, and reduce costs.”

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