Dubai, UAE, 12 June 2018: A workshop was held on the first day of the International District Energy Association (IDEA) Annual Conference and Tradeshow 2018, being held in Vancouver, Canada, from June 11 to 14, Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower), said in a Press communiqué.

The workshop was specially organised on ‘District Energy for Warmer Climates’, citing cases from cities and developing districts in the Asia Pacific region – Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, India and China, the communiqué said. The workshop was jointly organised by global agencies such as IDEA, Asia Pacific Urban Energy Association (APUEA) and UNEP ‘District Energy in Cities’ initiative, the communiqué further said.

Ahmad Bin Shafar

Ahmad Bin Shafar, CEO, Empower, highlighted that the future of smart cities lies in the adoption of District Cooling systems, which are characterised by great environmental and economic benefits and are the ideal solution for new real estate projects, during a panel discussion entitled ‘Perspectives from Expanding Markets’, the communiqué said. Empower participated in another session, held on ‘Financing, Governance and Operations’, the communiqué further said. The session discussed funding enterprises, competing for and managing public/private capital, risk mitigation, optimising rates of return, privatisation strategies and monetising assets, concession agreements and re-financing or re-capitalising assets, the communiqué added.

According to Empower, the workshop featured global industry experts sharing experience from real-world cases, enabling deeper discussion on complex issues, with special emphasis on business models and strategies for successful development and financing of District Energy systems and microgrids. The communiqué said the workshop included experts in the areas of district cooling, energy, water, finance and investment, as well as climate change specialists.