Dietrich Lehmann

DUBAI, UAE, 23 June 2019: Al Rawabi Dairy Company today signed an agreement with Germany-headquartered ME-LE Biogas to launch what it described as the first-of-its-kind biogas production project in the GCC region. H.E. Abdallah Sultan Al Owais, Chairman, Al Rawabi and Dietrich Lehmann, CEO, ME-LE, took part in the signing ceremony, which took place at the Emerald Palace Kempinski Dubai, in the presence of H.E. Dr Thani Bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Climate Change & Environment, H.E. Eng Dawood Abdulrahman AlHajiri, Director-General, Dubai Municipality, and other senior officials.

H.E. Abdallah Sultan Al Owais

Speaking on the occasion, Al Owais said the biogas initiative is in line with the UAE Energy Strategy 2050. “With thanks and admiration of our wise leadership, we have made great strides throughout our 30 years of operation,” Al Owais said. “Today, we are more than just a dairy farm – today, we are tackling environmental issues on a regional and global scale through our technologies, innovations and partnerships with leading international companies.” The project will see Al Rawabi produce biogas from farm waste, which the company said, would substantially reduce odour emissions, extract water for farm use and produce heat and electrical energy, as well as high-quality concentrated fertilizer.

Dr Ahmed Al-Tigani

Dr Ahmed Al-Tigani, CEO, Al Rawabi, said the projects will produce 1.3 MW electricity and 1.4 MW of thermal energy. It will protect ground water by reducing ammonia migration by 90%, Al-Tigani added.

Al Rawabi currently uses 11.6 MW of energy, whereas this project – at 1.4 MW – will supply only a portion of the needs, Dr Al-Tigani acknowledged, by way of answering a question from Climate Control Middle East. “We are a pioneer with this project,” he said. “After it succeeds, we can go for expansion.

Dr Al Zeyoudi said the Al Rawabi initiative was a laudable one in that it is going to raise the percentage of renewable energy of the company after the project is commissioned. “As a country, we have a target, and we want to reach seven per cent renewable energy use by 2020, 25% by 2030 and 75% by 2050,” he said. “So, the engagement and participation by the private sector is highlight appreciated.”