As part of Majid Al Futtaim's strategy to become net positive in water consumption and carbon emissions by 2040, it recently unveiled the first phase of Mall of the Emirates' solar photovoltaic (PV) plant, set to generate three GWh of clean energy, saving up to AED1.4m energy costs per year.
Led by Enova, 7,291 photovoltaic panels were fitted to 1,068 carports spanning 11,996 sq m; the equivalent to the size of nearly two football fields.
The project is part of an initiative between Enova and Majid Al Futtaim's Shopping Malls business unit to install solar PV to power three of its shopping malls by 2018.
The objective is to source a minimum of 7.5 percent of energy use on site via renewable energy at all new developments and a minimum of five percent in existing buildings.
In this edition of Inside AB, Bernd Debusmann and Jeremy Lawrence ask what this means for the future of sustainability in the UAE. How soon will this be feasible for more large-scale projects?