Global energy system creating more jobs in renewables than in fossil-fuel technologies Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., 24 May 2017 — More than 9.8 million people were employed in the renewable energy sector in 2016, according to a new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Renewable Energy and Jobs – Annual Review 2017, released at IRENA’s 13th Council meeting, provides the latest employment figures of the renewable energy sector and insight into the factors affecting the renewable labour market. “Falling costs and enabling policies have steadily driven up investment and employment in renewable energy worldwide since IRENA’s first annual assessment in 2012, when just over five million people were working in the sector,” said IRENA Director-General Adnan Z. Amin. “In the last ......read more

Agency plans future work to drive sustainable energy revolution Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., 23 May 2017 — More than 300 high-level government representatives from 110 countries and the European Union — the largest number ever represented at an IRENA Council meeting — gathered today in Abu Dhabi to attend the 13th Council of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). At the outset of the meeting, the Council elected H.E. Mr. Li Fanrong, Deputy Administrator of the National Energy Administration of China as Chair of the meeting and Colombia as Vice-Chair. “In our efforts to meet growing energy demand with cleaner, low-carbon and sustainable sources of energy sources, China has become one of the fast-growing renewable energy markets in the world. It has now become evident in China that renewables can not only ......read more

Sunday, May 21, 2017 (Sharjah) - Sharjah National Oil Corporation (SNOC) and Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) have signed a full Gas Sales Agreement (GSA) targeting the supply of Natural Gas for power generation in the Emirate of Sharjah. The Agreement was signed by Sheikh Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Petroleum Council and President of SNOC and Dr. Rashid Alleem, Chairman of SEWA. SNOC, in a Joint Venture with its partner Uniper, will organise the importation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) into the Port of Hamriyah in the Emirate of Sharjah in the UAE and supply Natural gas to the three power stations operated by SEWA. First gas deliveries to SEWA from the Joint Venture will be in early 2019. Some of the gas will flow from the Hamriyah port receiving jetty directly into the SEWA ......read more

Abu Dhabi, 17 May, 2017: ADNOC Distribution announced the opening of two new Xpress stations, marking the completion of the phase one of the construction of its Xpress station network. Launched to serve the most congested areas and roads in Abu Dhabi city and its suburbs, the Xpress station concept focuses exclusively on petrol fuelling services. A total of 10 stations have now been opened under phase one of the project.  The newly opened stations include Al Zahiyah station, located behind Abu Dhabi Distribution Company on Al Falah Street Abu Dhabi, and Al Raha station, located near Al Raha Gardens housing community in Khalifa City opposite Al Raha beach area.  Al Zahiyah station features three dispensers that offer two fuel varieties – Special 95 and E-Plus 91, with a capacity to serve 6 vehicles simultaneously, ......read more

Abu Dhabi, 17 May 2017 – The Zayed Future Energy Prize last night hosted a special reception for ambassadors from more than 30 countries to encourage international support for its upcoming 10th Anniversary edition. The event, hosted at the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in Masdar City, brought together diplomats as well as representatives from Abu Dhabi’s leading sustainability organisations. Guests were welcomed by Mohammad Jameel Al Ramahi, Chief Executive Officer of Masdar, who thanked the diplomatic community in the UAE for their ongoing efforts, emphasizing the critical role they have played in the success of the Prize.  He said: “The success of the Zayed Future Energy Prize during the past nine years, would not have been possible without the strong backing of ......read more

Mr Bin Sulayem visit Electric Way cables and electrical services center Dubai, May 17, 2017:   DP World and its industrial park operator NIP (National Industries Park) will continue to back the Dubai Plan 2021 and play a key  role in enhancing the Emirate’s position as a leading economic, industrial and commercial hub according to Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem.  Mr. Bin Sulayem’s remarks came during a visit to Electric Way, one of the largest suppliers of electric power cables and construction supplies in the region, which recently inaugurated its headquarters at National Industries Park. Mr. Bin Sulayem was given a tour of the facility by by Atheeqe Ansari, CEO of Electric Way and a briefing on the company's processes and future plans. Mr. Bin Sulayem commended Mr. Ansari ......read more

  -    H.E. Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources opens Honeywell Oil & Gas Technologies Symposium in Cairo -    Honeywell Connected Plant solutions to enable Egypt to capitalize on full potential of its oil and gas reserves Dubai, UAE - May 16, 2017 – Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and cloud-based solutions will be key driving forces for the development of Egypt’s oil and gas sector. That was the message delivered and showcased at the Honeywell (NYSE: HON) Oil & Gas Technologies Symposium, held in Cairo yesterday. H.E. Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources gave the welcome speech and opening to the event, where Honeywell welcomed government representatives, stakeholders, consultants and partners who gathered to hear ......read more

  -    ISA UAE Automation Conference and Exhibition 2017 set to analyze challenges and opportunities for UAE’s oil and gas sector    Abu Dhabi, UAE, 15 May 2017: Oil and gas leaders from across the UAE are set to come together in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, 16 May, as part of the 2nd ISA UAE Automation Conference and Exhibition 2017 to discuss automation and digitization enabled efficiency and growth opportunities for the country’s process industries.  Organized by DMS Global in partnership with the International Society of Automation (ISA), the event is taking place from 16-17 May at St. Regis Nation Tower, Corniche. The conference provides an important platform for automation professionals, equipment manufacturers and service providers to explore new strategies and solutions and ......read more

  May 14, 2017 Dubai, United Arab Emirates  The Sustainable Energy Programme Section team at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) participated in the International Passive House Conference in Vienna. Among the team members present at the conference were Engineer Abdulla Ahli, Manager of the Sustainable Energy Programme Section at MBRSC and Khalifa Majid Al Falasi, senior engineer at the section. The team gave a presentation on MBRSC's Sustainable Autonomous House, which is certified by the Passive House Institute in Germany as the first of its kind Passive House for a hot and humid climate.  The presentation provided information on the engineering practices and technology deployed in the house, including insulation techniques in both directions, a cooling system based on chilled water, mechanical ......read more

Abu Dhabi, 10 May, 2017: ADNOC Distribution has announced a reduction of the retail price of unsubsidised LPG cylinders for the month of May 2017 in all service stations in the UAE. As per the announcement that is set on the 10th of every month, the new reduced retail price is as follows: AED 45 per 25lb, reduced from the earlier marked retail price of AED 52; AED 90 per 50lb, reduced from the earlier marked retail price of AED 104; and AED 180 per 100lb, reduced from the earlier marked retail price of AED 208. Saeed Mubarak Al Rashdi, Acting Chief Executive Officer of ADNOC Distribution, said: “Our competitive LPG cylinder prices are re-evaluated every month bearing in mind the interests of consumers and household customers in the UAE while taking into account fluctuations in international prices for the product. In ......read more

Khobar, KSA, May 9, 2017:  Air Liquide Arabia (ALAR) announced today the startup of the Middle East’s first hydrogen pipeline network in the industrial city of Jubail, on the east coast of Saudi Arabia. Designed to transport large volumes of hydrogen to customers in both Jubail I and Jubail II, the network contributes to the development of the downstream industry, the optimization of natural resources and the increase of energy savings within the Kingdom. With a total length of over 21 km, the ALAR hydrogen pipeline provides large organizations, as well as small and medium enterprises in industries such as refining, petrochemicals, polysilicon, glass and steel, with a cost-effective and reliable alternative to existing supply solutions, contributing to enhance their industrial competitiveness, while increasing the ......read more

  Khaled Al Qubaisi appointed Chairman of Tabreed’s Board of Directors May 9, 2017 - Abu Dhabi, UAE: National Central Cooling Company PJSC (DFM: Tabreed), the leading regional district cooling utility company, today released its 2017 first quarter (Q1) financial results. The Company’s performance benefited from the new connections made last year, in addition to over 20,000 Refrigerated Tons (RT) added during Q1 2017.  These new connections, combined with Tabreed’s existing presence in the GCC, resulted in net profit increasing by 19% to AED 75.4 million. Financial highlights – three months ended 31 March 2017: •    Net profit attributable to the parent increased by 19 percent to AED 75.4 million (Q1 2016: AED 63.4 million)  •    Earnings per share ......read more

-    ENEC completes handover of Unit 1 systems to KHNP for commissioning, marking end of initial construction activities for the first of four units of the Barakah Project  -    KHNP will lead the commissioning work of the first UAE-based APR-1400, as part of the scope of the 2009 Prime Contract  -    Federal regulatory approval from FANR, in addition to international nuclear assessments from IAEA and WANO, will be required before fuel assemblies can be loaded into Unit 1    Abu Dhabi, UAE – 06 May 2017: Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) has announced that it has, together with Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), completed initial construction activities for Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant and the turnover of all plant systems ......read more

GPCA Expands Industry-Leading Responsible Care® and Gulf SQAS offerings Program Across the Supply Chain to the GCC’s Downstream Logistics Industry Association to Highlight its Initiatives during GPCA Supply Chain Conference in Abu Dhabi Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 1st May 2017 – The Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) continues to drive advancements in the region’s downstream industry around critical areas including environmental and safety compliance as it looks to position the Gulf as a global leader in best practice. The association will once again demonstrate its pioneering work in these fields during the GPCA Supply Chain Conference, which will take place between 2-4 May at the Rosewood Hotel, Abu Dhabi. Across the region, compliance with the Gulf Sustainability and Quality Assessment ......read more

Abu Dhabi, 30 April 2017: ADNOC Distribution has launched the second development phase of the Officers City service station, located on Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street in Abu Dhabi. The implementation of this phase is designed to raise the station’s capacity to meet growing demand for its high quality services and products by increasing the number of available fuel pumps.  The second phase also provides for the replacement of current operational fuel pumps with new ones designed in line with best international standards in terms of technology, health, safety and environmental protection. The company will suspend existing fuelling services for NGV, Green Diesel, Super 98, Special 95, E-Plus 91 fuels at the station for a maximum of 45 days to complete the upgrade process.  The service station’s backyard entrance and ......read more

Abu Dhabi – UAE April 29th, 2017 - SNC-Lavalin (TSX: SNC) is pleased to announce that it was awarded a contract by Saudi Aramco for engineering and project management services for the Berri Increment Program. New facilities are proposed at Saudi Aramco’s existing plants at Abu Ali and Khursaniyah to process a potential increased output of Arabian Light crude from the Berri Field on the east coast of Saudi Arabia.  SNC-Lavalin’s scope of work includes front end engineering design for a new 250 MBCD (thousand barrels of oil per calendar day) gas oil separation plant at the existing Abu Ali Gas Plant, as well as additional facilities at the Khursaniyah Gas Plant that will process 40 MBD (million barrels per day) of hydrocarbon condensate, all associated with the Berri Crude Increment.  Under the contract, ......read more

By Ole Hansen   Head of Commodity Strategy / Saxo Bank Commodities markets have seen big swings during the past month Farm commodities under pressure from supply overhang and speculative selling Precious metals surged around Easter on spike in geopolitical concerns Gold is back testing key resistance, but could be in for short-term correction Surprise jump in US gasoline stocks rattled oil-market bulls Big commodity swings have been witnessed during the past month, not least in the farm sector where bloated global stocks and the prospect of another bumper year — weather permitting — have led to heavy selling by hedge funds across both soft commodities and grains. The latter have been hit particularly hard with a net short now seen in all of the key crops. Industrial metals are on track for a second ......read more

Global CO2 emission to reach 43 Billion tonnes by 2040 Hydrogen to play a key role in resolving the energy storage dilemma UAE - 18 April 2017 Towns, cities and individuals must be held accountable for the energy they consume and should be rewarded and penalized accordingly, George Berbari, one of the world’s foremost voices on district cooling technologies told the prestigious District Cooling Stakeholders Summit, in Dubai yesterday (18 April 2017). Berbari, founder of UAE-based district cooling consultancy DC PRO Engineering, and author of the thought-provoking ‘The Energy Budget’ – which outlines a self-financing long-term solution to tackle climate change – outlined that with CO2 emissions expected to reach 43 billion tonnes globally by 2040, it is crucial that municipal official, government ......read more

Contest promotes innovation among business and engineering students Winning team to visit Schneider Electric’s global facilities, receive employment offers from company Dubai-UAE: 17 April, 2017 – Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management and automation, has launched the seventh edition of ‘Go Green in the City,’ its annual global challenge for business and engineering students that promotes innovative energy management ideas for smart cities.  Business and engineering undergraduate and post-graduate students from all over the world can join the competition until 12 May, 2017. Teams must submit a case study illustrating their ideas for innovative energy management solutions in cities related to one of the four topics: Strategy and Technology, Cooling Solutions, Energy ......read more

Empower announced recently a saving of 1000 MW of electricity, which is equal to AED 2.6 billion, as a result of using its district cooling services in  2016 Dubai, UAE, April 17 2017:  Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower), world’s largest district cooling services provider, underlined the importance of district cooling as an environment-friendly alternative to conventionalair-conditioning. The company emphasised the importance of district cooling to real estate developers ahead of the upcoming Cityscape Abu Dhabi2017, one of the largest and most significant real estate events, which will take place at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)from April18th to 20th 2017. "District cooling is the need of the hour. It paves the way for economic advancements. The UAE is making remarkable ......read more

-    Over 100 UAE Ambassadors briefed on the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy Program  -    Delegation witnessed the exceptional progress made at Barakah Abu Dhabi, UAE – 15 April 2017: The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) and Nawah Energy Company (Nawah) welcomed 117 of the UAE’s overseas diplomats to the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant during a tour of the project, which included a briefing on the UAE’s Peaceful Nuclear Energy Program and the latest construction and commissioning milestones.  The UAE Ambassadors and Heads of Missions Abroad were hosted by ENEC CEO, Mohamed Al Hammadi, Acting CEO of Nawah Energy Company, Mohammed Sahoo Al Suwaidi, Barakah One Company CEO, Nasser Al Nasseri, ENEC’s Deputy CEO Ahmed Al Rumaithi, and other senior ......read more

ENGIE, through its subsidiary International Power SA, has been qualified in the first round of the tendering process for two renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia. ENGIE is among the 27 companies selected for a 300 MW solar photovoltaic project, and among the 24 companies selected for a 400 MW wind farm. The shortlisted companies have been selected from a total of 128 applications. The 300 MW solar photovoltaic project will be developed in the Sakaka area in the northern Al Jouf Province. The 400 MW wind farm will be built in the Midyan coastal area in Tabuk Province, which is also in the north. Both projects will be backed by long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs), i.e. 25 years for Solar PV and 20 years for Wind. The request for proposal process will be launched on 17 April, on the occasion of the Saudi Arabia Renewable ......read more

Abu Dhabi, UAE, April 11, 2017:  ADNOC Distribution has announced a reduction of the retail price of unsubsidised LPG cylinders for the month of April 2017 in all service stations in the UAE. As per the announcement that is set on the 10th of every month, the new reduced retail price is as follows: AED 52 per 25lb, reduced from the earlier marked retail price of AED 58; AED 104 per 50lb, reduced from the earlier marked retail price of AED 116; and AED 208 per 100lb, reduced from the earlier marked retail price of AED 232. Saeed Mubarak Al Rashdi, Acting Chief Executive Officer of ADNOC Distribution, said: “Our competitive LPG cylinder prices are re-evaluated every month bearing in mind the interests of consumers and household customers in the UAE while taking into account fluctuations in international prices for the ......read more

-          Sultan Ahmad Bin Sulayem: CNPC’s move reinforces the company’s presence in Middle East markets and consolidates Jafza’s position as a regional hub for the oil and gas sector. -          Zhu Junfeng: New headquarters brings together 16 organisations in CNPC Group under one roof Dubai, United Arab Emirates,11 April, 2017: Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), a DP World Company and the UAE’s flagship trade and logistics hub for the Middle East region and Africa and the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the largest integrated energy company in China, have signed an agreement to establish CNPC’s regional headquarters in Jafza to serve its customers in the Middle East. The agreement was signed between Mohammed Al Muallem, CEO of Jafza and ......read more

•    Construction in full swing on Oman’s second largest power plant  •    Commercial operation to commence in less than two years •    Gas turbine project with capacity of over 1,700 Megawatts   06 April 2017 - Dubai UAE: Work is progressing fast on the construction of SOHAR III, a green-field, integrated combined-cycle gas turbine power plant located in SOHAR Port. The project is valued at over US$1 billion and is on track to commence commercial operations by January 2019. With more than enough capacity to power new developments in the recently announced SOHAR Port South and SOHAR Freezone Phase II expansions, the new plant will have a power output of over 1,700 Megawatts, making it Oman’s second largest power station.  Developed by Shinas ......read more