Emirates Central Cooling Systems (Empower) launched commercial operations for its district cooling plant in the UAE’s Dubailand, Wam reports. Empower awarded the contract for the construction of the facility to an undisclosed developer in 2022 at an investment ticket of AED 193 mn (c. USD 52.5 mn), according to the news agency.

The details: The plant will produce some 47k refrigeration tons annually, delivering cooling services to 250 residential and mixed use buildings in the Dubailand Residence Complex, the news agency notes.

Empower’s pipeline is booming: The company signed an agreement last month with real estate developer Sobha Realty to provide district cooling services for eight of Sobha Harland’s buildings in Dubai, extending its distribution network to supply 17k refrigeration tons (RT) of cooling capacity from its nearby Meydan station. Earlier in February, Empower invested USD 122 mn to provide 63k RT of cooling capacity to the Dubai Maritime City project, its first signed project after the company went public on the Dubai Financial Market in November.

REMEMBER- Dubai is regulating the sector as demand grows: The Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE) last month approved the final stage of laws regulating district cooling in the emirate. The laws aim to ensure contract efficiency between customers and service providers in Dubai’s district cooling sector to ensure cooling energy is produced and distributed at an appropriate cost. The district cooling market in MENA is expected to reach USD 15 bn by 2027.