10/19/2007 12:15 PM

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Masdar Plans World's First Green City Page 2

The city is being designed based on local climate and cultural traditions, particularly its solar movements and prevailing winds. Its orientation captures cooling sea breezes from the North, while its perimeter protects against the warmer desert winds. The Eastern wall facing the airport will be raised to provide a buffer, reducing aircraft noise in the city. Shaded by PV collecting canopies, courtyards and wind towers will draw cooling breezes into the narrow streets and filter harsh sunlight, conjuring images of ancient bazaars and market places. 

Construction materials with a high thermal mass will considerably reduce energy requirements. The relationship of one building to the next will provide shading and generate year round useable spaces between them. Solar collectors will be on roofs throughout the city; wind turbines will be placed at its outskirts. The perimeter wall will form an intelligent outer shell, housing the energy, environmental and recycling services. 

A solar powered desalination plant will provide a potable drinking water supply. Wastewater will be purified and recycled back to the city. In the process, it will be used to grow tree plantations, contributing to its biofuels strategy.

Carbon Sequestration is Key

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has embarked on an initiative to develop a national CO2 capture and storage (CCS) network. Leaders believe the country can reduce its CO2 emissions by 40%, while increasing oil  production by up to 10% and liberatinq large quantities of natural gas by separating CO2 from industrial and energy related sources and delivering them to oil reservoirs for enhanced oil recovery.

In February, the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company released an international request for proposals to conduct a feasibility study for carbon sequestration. The study initially targets Abu Dhabi and is expected to later expand to cover the rest of the UAE. The multi-billion dollar CCS program is the largest of its kind in the world and the first to be undertaken at a national level. Canadian firm SNC-Lavalin has been selected to conduct the study, which will be completed by the end of the year.

The firm will evaluate and rank options for onshore and offshore CO2 capture from industrial facilities in Abu Dhabi, and will identify the first project to be implemented as part of the network, provide a roadmap to develop the network and potentially link it with similar schemes across the region.

Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO of Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, says, "CCS is the most promising technology for the reduction of energy-based CO2 emissions and a viable substitute for the vast amount of natural gas currently re-injected into oil reservoirs for pressure maintenance. It's a win-win, reducing CO2 emissions in the country, while increasing oil production and maximizing natural gas availability."

Future Solar Leader

Besides powering the city using solar, Masdar has visions of becoming the premium developer and installer of renewable energy systems in the Middle East and North Africa region. It has entered into a partnership with one of the world's leading renewable energy developers, Conergy AG of Germany. 

The partnership will start with solar PV and then span out to fully integrated renewable energy systems including solar cooling, wind and biomass technologies. The partnership with Conergy will support Abu Dhabi's objectives to build local capacity and capability by transferring knowledge to UAE based resources in manufacturing, engineering, project management and finance of large scale renewable energy projects. Conergy will also assist Masdar in identifying and analyzing global trends in alternative energy technologies and translate them into international business opportunities.

The Masdar Clean Tech Fund, L.P. is a $250 million fund that will build a portfolio of cleantech funds, committing about $75 million to 3-5 fund managers. The remaining capital will be invested in co-investments alongside fund managers, direct investments in companies sourced by the Fund and strategic joint-venture investments. The Fund will seek to invest in companies with technologies that are suitable for commercialization in the United Arab Emirates.

Abu Dhabi is competing with Dongtan, China, which is trying to create the world's first zero carbon city on an island at the mouth of the Yangtse. The emirate believes it will win the race. "We are seeing a transition from the industrial age of human civilisation to the ecological age," says Peter Head, a director of Arup, the British engineering firm that is building Dongtan.

One day, all cities will be built like this. Unfortunately, the U.S is now a laggard. 

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Masdar is the host of the World Future Energy Summit in January 2008.

http://www.masdaruae.com/

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