Empower, the worlds largest district cooling company, today announced that 70 per cent of the first phase of its Business Bay facilities has been constructed. The first phase of the project will begin operations in May 2014, after the Treated Sewage Effluent (TSE) network is up and running.
The Business Bay plant is notable for being the first district cooling facility to implement the Dubai Executive Councils guidelines on environmental sustainability. Construction progress on the facility includes the completion of the plant structure, electrical transformer structures and chiller systems.

Ahmad Bin Shafar, the CEO of Empower, said: The Business Bay district cooling plants are major projects for Empower, and we predict that this network will be a significant revenue source for the company as the development evolves into Dubais most vibrant community comprising of commercial, retail and residential spaces. The Business Bay network also widens the scope of Empowers services to include a portfolio of developments across Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Khail Road.He added, The completion of the new Business Bay plant within the agreed time-frame for construction reflects our commitment towards providing the best services to our customers.

The new Business Bay plant will be the second of a larger network in the area. We are planning to build additional facilities in phases over the next few years. On completion, the Empower network will deliver 300,000 RT in the area. The upcoming plants are also being designed and implemented as per green building codes and will be LEED certified, he added.

Empowers expansion plans across the Business Bay district will add to the companys expanding portfolio. In January of this year, the company announced the acquisition of Palm District Cooling and Palm Utilities. The acquisition increased Empowers local market share to about 70% of the UAEs district cooling market, in addition to increasing its capacity to around one million RT.