The Sustainabilist | WATER
INTERVIEW
Saving Energy Insights from the CEO of Etihad ESCO Ali Al Jassim, on their role in the built environment, their services and vision for the future.
H
ave sustainability and environmental issues always been a passion of yours? How did you first get involved, and how did you develop your passion? Yes, since my early engineering days, my passion and vision have been to develop buildings and systems, which are sustainable and environment friendly. Although, I followed my passion throughout my career, the major breakthrough came when I was appointed, CEO of Etihad ESCO. Our vision is to transform Dubai’s built environment into a leading example of energy efficiency for the region and the world, thereby making the emirate one of the most sustainable cities, globally. Now, my passion and vision were aligned and we had targets set. Dubai is a fast-growing city and, a large number of buildings have a major chunk of energy consumption. Our primary target has been building retrofit, through which we can achieve targets set under DSM strategy 2030. What exactly does Etihad ESCO do for the built environment and how do
18
