Speaking at the Emirates Green Building Council’s annual congress in Dubai on Monday, Nabil Siyam, the principal building studies specialist at Dubai Municipality, said that both the ranking system and the retrofitting standards are likely to be introduced in January next year.

“This will be four categories and will be introduced from 1 January 2016,” he said, referring to the rankings.
The entry-level for ranking buildings will be the bronze category and will be based on the minimum standards that buildings need to meet under Dubai Municipality’s Green Building Regulations, which were initially introduced for government buildings in 2010 but became mandatory for all new buildings last year.

“Then there are some enhancements or new requirements for the other classifications,” Mr Siyam said.
The new law governing retrofits for existing buildings, meanwhile, is likely to follow a similar pattern to the rules for new buildings that became mandatory last year in that it will not be compulsory for private projects in the first ­instance.

“It will be launched but always Dubai Municipality will be giving our stakeholders an optional period,” said Mr ­Siyam. He said he could not give a date at this stage as to when it might become compulsory.

Meanwhile, Dubai’s Supreme Council of Energy senior director of strategy and planning, Taher Diab, said that it is in the process of developing an “energy intensity map” for Dubai. “This is actually a tool where you can look at where is Dubai’s highest [energy] consumption.That is naturally going to target older buildings and facilities.

“We’re going to be looking at a sample of commercial, residential and industrial, and then take it to the step where Etihad Esco, for example, can focus their strategic planning on where to target building ­retrofits.”

Etihad Esco is a company that was set up by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority in 2013 with a remit to help to improve the energy efficiency of Dubai’s existing building stock.

Abu Dhabi already has its own energy efficiency ranking for buildings, known as Pearl ratings under its Estidama regime. However, thus far in Dubai, companies looking to prove a building’s green credentials have generally adopted the US Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards. As a result, the UAE has the eighth-largest stock of LEED-rated buildings outside the United States at 3.1 million square metres.

The new retrofitting law will utilise a framework that was developed into a set of technical standards by the Emirates Green Building Council this year.

Saeed Al Abbar, the chairman of the Emirates Green Building Council, which is a not-for-profit industry body, said there are 120,000 existing buildings in Dubai and that many of these were built before any energy efficiency or sustainability regulations were in place.

“Even those that were built within the regulations, some are five or six years old and need fine-tuning or refurbishing to ensure they are performing as well as they should be.”
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About 35,000 of these have been identified as being suitable for major retrofits but others could benefit from improvements in operational and maintenance practices to enhance their lifespan, he added.

​Source: The National

Economic diversification has been driving Dubai's growth by over four per cent annually from 2012 to 2014 despite the slow growth of the global economy, a senior government official said on Monday.

Sami Al Qamzi, Director-General of Department of Economic Development, said a key reason for Dubai's resilience has been the emphasis Dubai places on economic diversification. "Today, Dubai's economy is much more diversified than 2008-2009, and the dramatic transformation of Dubai's economy that started in the early '70s is now entering a new level," said Al Qamzi at the launch of the Dubai Investment Forum.

The highlight of the structural transformation that Dubai underwent over the last few decades is the city's evolution as a trade, investment, services and knowledge hub, said Al Qamzi.

Dubai's state-of-the-art infrastructure and business-friendly regulations, along with a demonstrated ability to adapt to investor needs and changing global economic patterns, have set the emirate apart among regional and international hubs, he said.

"Dubai has the proven capacity to connect trade and people across six continents with the minimum lead time," said Al Qamzi.

"The superior logistics infrastructure of Dubai continues to cut transit times and inventory costs, enabling businesses to focus on growth and expansion into new markets. More importantly, infrastructure development and policy reforms in Dubai clearly address investor needs and encourage public sector participation. Dubai is today at the threshold of a new era of public-private participation in major infrastructure projects, especially in the run-up to the Expo 2020."

The Dubai Investment Forum is a strategic initiative that is part of Dubai's investor outreach and growth plans. The  forum is aimed at providing investors with insights on existing, new and emerging investment opportunities across several key growth sectors in the emirate.

Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, who attended the inauguration, commended the importance of communication between investors and government institutions, and lauded the efforts of Dubai FDI in attracting international companies to the emirate of Dubai. Shaikh Maktoum stressed that such meetings support Dubai government's efforts to promote the business sector, drive investment and economic development opportunities and further underline Dubai's position as a global trade and investment hub, and a vital player in the development of the global economy.

The opening session of the Forum on 'Opportunities for Growth, Partnership and Innovation' focused on how Dubai's leadership vision, strategy and investments in current and future infrastructure projects create unique opportunities for growth, partnership and innovation and in making Dubai a pivotal hub in the global economy.

The participants included Hussain Lootah, Director General, Dubai Municipality; Saeed Al Tayer, Managing Director& Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Electricity & Water Authority; Humaid Al Qatami, Chairman, Dubai Health Authority; and. Khalifa Al Zaffin, Executive Chairman, Dubai Aviation City Corporation.

Fahad Al Gergawi, CEO of Dubai FDI, said the Forum seeks to develop a roadmap for investment and economic growth and to help evolve corporate strategies that will further accelerate regional and global capital inflow into Dubai. The forum led to smart solutions to enhance ease of doing business in Dubai, to weather economic challenges and to support future strategies of investors.

"The forum enabled Dubai-based companies to enhance operational efficiencies and secure access to international markets," said Al Gergawi.
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"Several direct meetings were held alongside the Forum that brought together investors and government representatives to explore the potential expansion of their businesses beyond Dubai and the optimal means for sourcing required capital for such expansion."

Dubai carrier Emirates plans to move its operations to the new terminal at Dubai South when it completes expansion

President Tim Clark last year said Emirates would take up vacated space at Terminal 1 as the new Concourse D is launched.

Dubai Airports officials said construction of the concourse has just finished and the testing phase will now be launched.

Initially planned for summer 2015, Concourse D from Terminal 1 may be ready in the first quarter of 2016 and be able to handle operations of about a 100 airlines.

“People want to be there (Dubai International) because they can make connections and everyone is there,” Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports said on why airlines are reluctant to move to the new Al Maktoum International airport.

“Now those capacity opportunities are becoming more difficult to satisfy. So people will have to look at different airports.”

Eight transactions in Emirates Hills community totals Dh319.77m in Q3 2015