Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, UAE minister of state and chairman of Masdar has said that Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week will help attract investment and cultivate partnership in order to accelerate technologies that can benefit the UAE.
"Renewable energy is a critical component for building a sustainable future and has today graduated from an expensive alternative to a competitive technology of choice," he said in his speech at the World Future Energy Summit.
"We have seen growth in the sector as a result of the sharp decline in costs and the steady rise in technology efficiency. In fact, renewable energy remains the fastest growing source of energy, propelling investments to grow 16 per cent in 2014 and reaching more than $310 billion. This growth is a result of the commercial opportunity of renewable energy, coupled with the world's growing demand for electricity." "This is a historic year for the UAE," said Al Jaber. "As the country embarks on its ‘Year of Innovation', the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week will help attract investment and cultivate partnership in order to accelerate technologies that can benefit our country." To jumpstart the UAE's push to further integrate innovation into the fabric of the country's economy, the programme at ADSW is designed to encourage new thinking, collaboration and real-world action by focusing on timely issues affecting sustainable development. Some of the key issues highlighted this year include the power of partnership and technological innovation.
The power of partnership – how working together can drive commercial solutions – will be examined by highlighting key projects in the UAE. One project spotlighted is Al Reyadah, an Abu Dhabi-based project that would not be possible without the union of cross-discipline partners.
Al Reyadah – a cutting-edge carbon, capture, usage and storage (CCUS) joint partnership – combines Abu Dhabi National Oil Company's experience in the oil and gas sector with Masdar's know-how in clean technology to deliver a commercially viable CCUS system. The program captures and sequesters industrial carbon, enhances oil recovery and delivers environmental benefits.
The UAE community will be able to see first-hand how innovation and technology can advance a brighter future.
The Solar Impulse 2 – a solar-powered plane that will fly round the world without using a single drop of fuel – will be in Abu Dhabi during ADSW as it prepares for the historic flight. Hosted by Masdar, the plane is an example of how pioneering pursuits – and imagination – can drive innovation. For example, the plane's technology partners had to anticipate and solve for the complex challenges and conditions the pilots and the plane would undergo.
The World Future Energy Summit, now in its eighth year, is the world's foremost event dedicated to the advancement of renewable energy, energy efficiency and clean technology. The conference program and exhibition engages key leaders – from policy and business to academic – to address the importance of deploying renewable energy, the growing business opportunities in the Middle East and the need to drive innovation and investment in order to diversify the energy mix.
Through Masdar, and global platforms like ADSW, Abu Dhabi has emerged as an international energy hub, promoting the adoption of sustainable development, renewable energy and raising awareness to the growing challenge of water scarcity.
Source: WAM