The Solar Decathlon Middle East will be organised at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, it has been announced.

The announcement was made by Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, vice chairman of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, and managing director and CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) at a press conference at the World Government Summit in Dubai, where Dewa is its sustainable partner.

The Solar Decathlon Middle East was created through an agreement between both the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and Dewa, and the United States Department of Energy. Dubai will host two rounds of this distinguished competition. First in 2018 and then in 2020 to coincide with World Expo 2020 in Dubai, whose theme 'Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ fits well with this distinguished competition.

The Press conference was attended by Ahmed Buti Al Muhairibi, secretary general of the Supreme Council; Waleed Salman, executive vice President of strategy & business development at Dewa; Marwan Bin Haider, executive vice president of innovation and the future at Dewa; Khawla Al Mehairi, Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications, officials from the Supreme Council and DEWA, and local and international media.

“It is my pleasure to announce the location of the Solar Decathlon Middle East, which is held for the first time in the Middle East and Africa, while we’re at the World Government Summit. Dewa is the sustainable partner of this summit, which has become a key forum from the UAE to the world to anticipate and shape the future,” said Al Tayer.

“Dubai’s hosting of the Solar Decathlon reflects its realisation that sustainable development is key to achieving a balance between development and sustainability. This balance will help protect the rights of future generations to live in a clean, healthy, and safe environment. This also reflects Dubai’s commitment to invest in innovation, which is one of the main priorities of the UAE.

“The Solar Decathlon is a unique opportunity for university students to gain important experiences, implement the theories they learn, and demonstrate their skills and capabilities in innovation and design to achieve a sustainable lifestyle. It is also an opportunity for the public to watch the teams in action as they compete and challenge each other. Since opening the door for registration in this competition, it has attracted many university teams from all over the world. A total of 22 university teams from 16 countries have been shortlisted to the final stage of the Solar Decathlon. Qualified teams will design, build, and operate sustainable, cost-and-energy efficient models of solar-powered homes, with a focus on protecting the environment, and taking into consideration the climate conditions of the region,” added Al Tayer.

Al Tayer noted the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park was selected to host the Solar Decathlon Middle East because it is one of the most important projects and key to developing the economy to support environmental sustainability and increase our supply of clean energy.

The solar park is the largest single-site solar energy project in the world, based on the Independent Power Producer model. It will provide 25 per cent of Dubai’s total power output by 2030, producing 5,000MW by 2030 and will help reduce 6.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually. An area of approximately 60,000 sq m has been allocated to the Solar Decathlon at the solar park.

“Hosting two consecutive competitions of the Solar Decathlon Middle East with cash prizes of Dh10 million, will achieve the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who once observed that, ‘Every investment in the development of clean energy sources is at the same time an investment to protect the environment for future generations,’” said Al Tayer.

The teams that have qualified to the final stage of the first Solar Decathlon Middle East include the University of Sharjah, the American University in Dubai, Ajman University of Science & Technology, the American University of Ras Al Khaimah, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, New York University Abu Dhabi, and the Petroleum Institute from the UAE. It also includes King Saud University from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar University from Qatar, Dhofar University in Oman, the University of Jordan from Jordan, Virginia Tech from the USA, the University of Bordeaux from France, Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, the University of Wollongong in Australia, Gabriele D'Annunzio University of Chieti-Pescara and Sapienza University of Rome from Italy, Ion Mincu University of Architecture and Urbanism from Romania, Islamic Science University of Malaysia from Malaysia, National Chiao Tung University from Taiwan, National University of Sciences and Technology in Pakistan, and the University of Belgrade of Serbia. – TradeArabia News Service