Empower to invest $27.8m to upgrade JBR cooling plant

Empower, also known as Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation, said it will invest $27.8m (Dhs102m) to upgrade and modernise its district cooling plant in Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR).

The district cooling firm said the upgrades incorporate cutting-edge technologies to improve the energy efficiency and reliability of the cooling system. Empower did not disclose the entity that will carry out the upgrades, but the company expects the work completed by 2025.

“The modernisation project of the JBR plant is part of a pre-set plan to upgrade the infrastructure of all Empower plants in Dubai,” Ahmad bin Shafar, CEO of Empower said while noting that using the latest technologies in the district cooling industry reflects the firm’s keenness to make Dubai the city with the least carbon footprint in the world.

The upgrade is the plant’s third since its completion 19 years ago, with the first taking place in 2016 and will contribute to achieving savings in energy, increasing efficiency and significantly reducing carbon emissions and relieving pressure on the national power grid.

At a value of AED 102 million, Empower upgrades its “JBR” district cooling plant. The project is set to be completed within 2 years.

JBR plant serving:

76 towers
9,000 residences
2,000 hotel units pic.twitter.com/5v2yrmiISo

— EMPOWER (@Empower_ae) April 17, 2023

“The upgrade will bring the plant up to the next generation of district cooling systems and ensure that the Jumeirah Beach Residence and Blue Waters area continue to receive high-quality cooling service,” Empower said in a bourse filing.

The project is expected to contribute to achieving huge savings in energy, increasing efficiency, significantly reducing carbon emissions and relieving pressure on the national power grid. The JBR plant serves many mega buildings and nearly 19 luxury hotels including the Caesars Palace Hotel, the Address Beach Resort in addition to the Ain Dubai, the tallest observation wheel in the world and the iconic Madam Tussaud Museum.

Empower’s growth strategy

Meanwhile, the district cooling major’s full-year net profit jumped by 7 per cent year-on-year to Dhs1bn in 2022 while its revenues reached Dhs2.8bn, a 13.3 per cent increase compared to 2021.

Read: Shareholders of Dubai’s Empower approve $116m dividend

Empower attributed the growth in its revenues to a 13.3 per cent increase in the demand for district cooling services. The company is providing district cooling services to more than 1,463 buildings as of the end of December 2022, allowing it to increase its market share to more than 80 per cent.

Its shareholders declared a total dividend of Dhs425m in H1 2022, which translates to Dhs0.043 per share. The district cooling services provider said its dividends payout represents 42.5 per cent of its paid-up capital.

Empower said the dividend is aligned with the company’s policy of distributing a minimum dividend amount of Dhs850m per annum in the first two fiscal years following its listing on the Dubai bourse. The district cooling firm raised Dhs2.66bn from its initial public offering in Dubai after shareholders priced its shares at the top of a marketed range and the offering drew $34bn in orders from both international and retail investors.

Founded in 2003, Empower owns and operates 81 district cooling plants and provides district cooling energy to its customers through 380 kilometres of insulated pipes. Recently, it signed an agreement with Sobha Realty in March to provide environmentally district cooling services to the developer’s mixed-use projects, most notably the Sobha Hartland master community with a capacity of 17,000 refrigeration tons (RT).

Read: Empower to invest Dhs450m to serve over 43 buildings in DMC

High-profile developments that are being serviced by the company across Dubai include Atlantis The Royal Hotel, Museum of the Future, Marsa Al Arab, One Zabeel and Wasl1.