Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has taken the Summer Peak-Load Campaign 2009 on reducing energy usage, to government departments throughout the emirate.

During peak hours in the summer season, between 12 noon – 5pm, energy consumption in Dubai registers a dramatic increase, with air-conditioning alone accounting for nearly 60 per cent of the total power intake by residential and commercial users.

As part of extending the Summer Peak-Load Campaign 2009 beyond its current purview of residential and commercial users, a Dewa team has already visited Emirates Group as well as government establishments such as Dubai Municipality, Dubai Naturalization and Residency Department (DNRD), Dubai Courts, Land Department and Public Prosecution. Visits to more government departments are scheduled in the near future.

“The demand for electricity and water in Dubai has registered an exponential increase in the past decade as a result of the emirate’s overall growth. Consequently, new power stations, water desalination plants and networks for the transportation and distribution of power need to be created to meet the high demand. This situation further calls for greater urgency as it impacts our ability to preserve our natural resources for later generations,' said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, managing director and chief of Dewa.

“Dewa’s collaboration with the Dubai government departments is intended to spread enhanced awareness on the importance of energy conservation. Already, we have seen significant reductions in energy consumption as one of the early outcomes of these awareness campaigns.”

Dewa has already been distributing leaflets and brochures on the various measures that residential, government departments, and commercial establishments can adopt to reduce their energy usage.

Dewa has launched several initiatives to spearhead the drive for energy conservation. Its ‘Best Consumer’ campaign rewarded 13 home consumers with cash prizes amounting to Dh22,000 for reducing individual water and electricity consumption.

The ‘Conservation for a Better Tomorrow’ campaign, which aimed to encourage students, schools and universities in Dubai to decrease their energy consumption, helped participating institutions minimise the use of water by nearly 42 per cent.-TradeArabia News Service