UAE’s Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc) has recently opened five new service stations in Dubai, expanding its network to 122 stations in the UAE, a media report said.

The Group is on track to increase its fuel retail presence by 40 per cent by 2020, reported Emirates news agency Wam.

All the newly built solar powered service stations are located in Hatta, Oud Al Muteena, two stations on Dubai - Al Ain Road, City of Arabia, thereby serving newly established residential communities and remote locations.

Saif Humaid Al Falasi, Enoc Group CEO, said, "We successfully opened eight service stations this year, and as the official integrated energy partner for Expo 2020, we are on track with our plans to expand our service station network by 40 per cent by 2020, to accommodate the anticipated 25 million visitors for Expo 2020.

"The five new service stations demonstrate our commitment to not only meet the energy needs of Dubai and the UAE, but to facilitate and enhance the convenience for both residents and visitors of the UAE."

All five service stations are built in compliance with the new Dubai Municipality’s Green Build regulations. The excess power generated from the solar PV panels installed at the roof of the canopy at each service station is transmitted to the main grid of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, DEWA, with a solar metre designed to track the power injected into the power grid.

The Photo-Voltaic (PV) solar panels installed on the canopy roof of the service stations can generate on average 120kWh (Kilowatt per hour) energy on an ideal day. This is approximately 30 percent more than the average energy required to run a station. Built with UL Certified double wall tanks and double wall fuel piping with secondary containment, it also mitigates environmental pollution.

Similar to all the new service stations designed and built by Enoc Group, the five new service stations will include electrical vehicle charging stations operated by DEWA, and will also have fully integrated digital wall displays on the forecourt columns and throughout the station. Motorists can access ZOOM convenience store, Pronto, variety of F&B offerings and AutoPro. They can also benefit from a variety of payment methods such as Enoc’s cashless and credit card-less ViP system and mobile payment.

Last year, Enoc announced that all future service stations will be powered by solar energy to support the UAE’s long-term strategy to target an energy mix that combines renewable, nuclear and clean energy sources. Enoc estimates more than 23 GWh of solar energy will be generated to power the new stations by 2020, minimising the load on Dewa’s grid and power generating stations. To date, Enoc owns six solar power service stations.