Ras Al Khaimah Municipality has launched its "Model Villa Initiative" in partnership with Masdar (Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company) to promote energy efficiency and building of more sustainable residential villas in the emirate.

 

The new initiative comes following the recent signing of a MoU with RAK Municipality and is part of a wider collaboration between the two entities to study and improve the energy and water efficiency of existing villas in Ras Al Khaimah, said a statement from Masdar.

 

As per the deal, Masdar will act as a technical adviser to RAK Municipality on the plan, which will launch later this year.

 

The initiative is part of the municipality’s building retrofits programme, which complements the Ras Al Khaimah Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Strategy 2040 and the UAE’s overarching plan to improve energy efficiency by 40 per cent by 2050.

 

It will see the selection and retrofitting of a local villa to demonstrate how energy savings can be achieved in existing buildings. The results will then be analysed and made public for the benefit of other villa owners undertaking similar retrofits, it stated.

 

The selection process for the villa will be through an open-call for applications. Starting this week, booths will be set up at RAK Municipality and shopping malls around the emirate, including Manar Mall, Al Naeem Mall and Al Hamra Mall, to raise awareness and drive submissions, it added.

 

Munther Mohammed bin Shekar, the director general of RAK Municipality, said: "The RAK government is engaged in a long-term strategy for sustainability. We welcome the collaboration with Masdar and the launch of this initiative to support the adoption of new technologies and practices, which will reduce the energy intensity of our economy and increase the share of renewable energy."

 

"The model villa initiative is the first, concrete example of our collaboration," he stated.

 

Lauding the tieup, Yousef Ahmed Baselaib, the executive director of Sustainable Real Estate, Masdar, said it aims to demonstrate the economic feasibility and commercial benefits of retrofitting homes with the latest sustainable technology. 

 

"Our expertise in energy, waste and water conservation will be a valuable addition to this project, hopefully delivering substantial savings to property owners and residents in the long term," he added.-TradeArabia News Service