‘Energy excellence, carbon intelligence, business growth’

Context for the interview: Federal Decree-Law No. 11 of 2024 on the Reduction of Climate Change Effects entered into force on 30 May 2025, with full compliance required by 30 May 2026. It makes GHG measurement, reporting, and reduction a legal obligation for every organisation in the UAE, including those in free zones. Dubai Law No. 3 of 2026 simultaneously mandates lifecycle safety certification for all buildings. The UAE has set legally binding emissions targets, with buildings explicitly named in the national delivery plan. The question for facility owners and energy managers is no longer whether to act or not – it is whether their data systems, energy performance baselines and carbon inventories are ready for the scrutiny that verification will bring, or not.

What does engineering-led energy excellence mean in practice, and how does it connect to the UAE’s regulatory obligations?

Every recommendation is anchored in measured data and expressed in verifiable outcomes, not sustainability narratives.Two UAE climate commitments now define the performance threshold for every facility manager and energy professional in the region. The 2023 Third Update to the Second NDC pledges a 40% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030 relative to a business-as-usual trajectory. And NDC 3.0, submitted to the UNFCCC in November 2024, commits to a 47% absolute reduction in emissions by 2035, compared to 2019 levels.

Though these employ different methodologies — BAU-relative for 2030, absolute baseline for 2035 — the commercial implication is identical. Every sector must demonstrate a consistent downward emissions trajectory.

The updated UAE Energy Strategy 2050 sets 2030 phase targets of: 42–45% improvement in individual and institutional energy efficiency compared to 2019, 32% clean energy generation share, and AED 100 billion in financial savings.

In the buildings sector, Dubai’s plan to retrofit more than 30,000 buildings by 2030 through HVAC and lighting upgrades places cooling systems at the core of national delivery.

In commercial and institutional buildings across the GCC region, HVAC systems account for 50-70% of total energy consumption. A chiller plant operating at 35% load with degraded heat transfer surfaces, wastes 20-30% more energy than its rated efficiency. Every unit of preventable overconsumption directly undermines the UAE’s NDC trajectory.

Carbon accounting and ISO compliance are vital to achieving climate goals. What should organisations based in the GCC region understand about the scope of what is now required?

The voluntary era is over. Every entity in the UAE — including free zones — must produce a GHG inventory aligned with ISO 14064-1 and submit it through the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment’s Integrated Emissions Quantification Tool. All submitted data is subject to independent third-party verification. Penalties for non-compliance under Decree-Law No. 11 range from AED 50,000 to AED 2 million, doubling for repeat violations within two years. Separately, Dubai Law No. 3 of 2026 carries fines from AED 100 to AED 1 million, rising to AED 2 million for repeat offences. They are two distinct enforcement frameworks operating simultaneously.

When it comes to carbon intelligence, it is important to consider the full ISO 14064 trilogy, namely 14064-1 for organisational GHG inventory development; 14064-2 for emission reduction project quantification, positioning clients to participate in UAE carbon markets, including the National Carbon Credit Registry where applicable; and 14064-3 for verification readiness.

Refrigerant leakage is a routinely overlooked Scope 1 emission source. R-410A carries a Global Warming Potential of 2,088 times CO₂. Most operators have no quantification methodology. That is now a legal compliance gap.

That is why it is important to lean on an Integrated Management Systems approach – one that supports ISO 14001 for environmental compliance; ISO 45001 for occupational health and safety, which is strongly aligned with Dubai Law No. 3’s building safety obligations; and ISO 9001, which is increasingly becoming a prerequisite for government and multinational procurement.

Delivered under a common High Level Structure, the integrated IMS eliminates duplication and presents a unified governance framework to regulators and clients alike.

You serve HVAC manufacturers, distributors and the next generation of practitioners. How does business growth connect to the energy and carbon agenda?

The market is being reshaped by three forces: Tightening MEPS standards; UAE refrigerant phase-down regulations; and the regional trajectory towards full Kigali Amendment compliance, and carbon reporting – now embedded as a procurement criterion.

Developers and asset owners must make well-informed, technically grounded decisions today – choices made now will determine their ability to meet UAE energy and emissions targets over the next decade.

Manufacturers and distributors without a credible regulatory and technology roadmap carry a commercial liability within a five-year horizon.

It is important for manufacturers to integrate regulatory and policy intelligence across GCC region codes, technology roadmap analysis and investment advisory. It is especially important if they are evaluating regional entry or expansion.

And that brings me to training, which in my view, closes the loop. The GCC region has a pronounced skills deficit in HVAC energy management, ISO 14064 carbon accounting and applied HVAC performance methodology. It is important to develop GCC-contextualised skills, which will help close specific competency gaps.

Energy excellence without carbon intelligence is incomplete. Carbon intelligence without business growth is a cost centre. Business growth without energy and emissions capability is a shrinking opportunity. In the GCC region today, they are one agenda.

The writer is Founder and CEO of Cosmos Energy Intelligence FZ LLC. He may be contacted at advisory@cosmosenergyintel.com.