Speaking at a golf morning sponsored by Palm District Cooling, where delegates to the International District Cooling Conference were invited, Keith Levers, CEO of Palm District Cooling said that end consumers should have the freedom to choose the kind of cooling they wish to have for their living spaces. Over 200 top executives from district cooling and allied disciplines from all over the world are in the UAE to attend the conference, organized by IDEA (International District Energy Association) at the Emirates Palace Hotel, Abu Dhabi, which will run till the 17th of January2007.
Palm District Cooling’s consumer survey findings
Palm District Cooling recently conducted a survey to gauge end-user awareness of the advantages of district cooling. The survey findings illustrate that consumers are either not aware of the benefits of using this technology or are unable to exercise their freedom of choice, even they wish to use it. “Let us not take the consumers for granted or doubt their intelligence,” said Keith.
“Before undertaking a project, every real estate developer tries to conform to what the consumer desires in terms of design, size of dwelling, amenities and finish. So let us also ask the future resident what he or she wants in terms of the climate control of the building. Given the fact that district cooling is by far the cleaner, greener and cheaper option – both for the developer as well as for the user, I don’t see why someone would choose any other kind of conventional cooling,” he added. “If consumers can decide which car they drive and what shoes they wear, they should also be allowed to choose how they wish to cool their homes and offices.”
During the survey conducted by Palm District Cooling with residents of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, 71% of the respondents said they knew little or nothing of the advantages of district cooling while 29% of the respondents said they knew that district cooling was superior to other forms of air conditioning but had no option but to accept what was offered to them in the real estate market. On being told how district cooling can save money in the long term as well as help preserve and judiciously utilize earth’s fast-dwindling energy resources, all the respondents wished they could use district cooling.
More awareness of district cooling benefits needed
“Our findings clearly demonstrate the need for educating the end consumers so they can be the market drivers, instead of being passive users,” said Keith. It is noteworthy that district cooling is beneficial to all concerned, on several levels.
For Master Developers, using district cooling means reduced power infrastructure as well as lower capital investment and additional sellable land space. It also allows them to focus on their core business while increasing reliability and redundancy. For property developers, use of district cooling means an elimination of the cost of chillers and associated electro mechanical works with a corresponding reduction in property taxes and insurance plus reduced operational, maintenance and upgrade costs.
On a consumer level, district energy can provide savings to end-users through reduced energy and maintenance costs and an elimination or reduction of equipment replacement costs. There is also a misconception that district cooling can be provided only on a fixed charge, whether consumers use it or switch it off – this is not true as district cooling is billed on consumption. As there is no equipment installed at the site, noise and vibration is also eliminated.
For governments and utility authorities, adoption of district cooling spells further benefits. As district cooling typically uses less power than conventional air conditioning, it reduces investment in power generation and distribution by a reduction in demand and consumption of energy fuels. This in turn decreases pollution, encourages re-cycling and alleviates global warming and Ozone depletion.
About Palm District Cooling
Palm District Cooling (PDC) is part of Istithmar, the investment arm of Dubai World. Palm District Cooling was set up to provide district cooling services in the UAE in anticipation of rising demand for such utility provisions, fuelled by massive growth in the real estate sector. PDC’s primary business is to produce and distribute chilled water for air-conditioning in residential and commercial developments. PDC is expected to become the world’s largest district cooling provider through the provision of services to a number of prestigious projects, such as The Palm, Jumeirah Lake Towers, Discovery Gardens, Ibn Battuta Mall etc, and extending to other developers and end users within the region and beyond.
www.palmdistrictcooling.com
