Leading international power system consulting company opens first Middle East office in the UAE in response to growing smart grid and renewable energy sectors in the region

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 10 January 2012 - CESI, a market leader in power systems consulting and testing, announces today its expansion into the Middle East with operations based in the UAE. Italy-based CESI is launching in the Middle East at the World Future Energy Summit (WFES) 2011, taking place in Abu Dhabi from 16-19 January 2012.

CESI is a world leading technical consulting company with over 50 years' expertise operating in six main areas including electrical transmission and distribution, renewable and storage, power generation, testing, certification and quality assurance, solar cells and engineering & environment. CESI is one of the top three global suppliers of advanced multi-junction high efficiency solar cells for space and terrestrial applications, lending itself to the burgeoning demand for these applications in the region.

Commenting on CESI's expansion into the Middle East, Matteo Codazzi, Chief Executive Officer of CESI, said: "Establishing our first office in the UAE is a major milestone for CESI and evidence of our long term commitment to this important region. The Middle East is a key strategic hub for CESI due to its dramatic expansion into the transmission/distribution, smart grids and  renewable energy sectors, and we are looking forward to sharing our deep knowledge and 50 years of international experience to benefit this market." 

Gianluca Marini, Director of Consulting, Solutions and Services Division at CESI, said: "The Middle East region is an attractive market, with a stable economic environment, significant growth rates and a receptive approach towards new business initiatives. The Engineering & Technical Consulting services market in the electricity sector is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years, particularly in the innovative fields of smart metering & smart grids and electrical interconnections (in particular HVDC),  and we look forward to playing a part in this. In the HVDC-HVAC field alone we have over 30 years' experience working on more than 100 interconnections projects in 35 countries, and a loyal group of "core" customers, providing us with a continuous source of opportunities to develop new technological capabilities, which we believe will help us achieve successful results in this region."

Mr Marini continued: "CESI brings extensive technical expertise and experience to the Middle East market, being the only technical consultant who has worked on both of the two largest smart meter programmes deployed in the world. We have advised Enel, the first company in the world to replace old electromechanical meters with electronic ones, installing 33 million of them across Italy in just five years. We have also advised Endesa, the largest electric utility company in Spain, as it undertook a programme to introduce 13 million meters. We hope to work on several such large scale projects in the Middle East."

Floris Schulze, who was recently appointed Managing Director of CESI Middle East, said: "We have been operating in several Middle East countries for a number of years, and the opening of CESI Middle East will help us strengthen relationships with key clients in the region, enhancing the effectiveness and responsiveness of our operations. We are also mandated to apply smart meter technology in the region and to activate programmes of distributed solar energy sources, in which we are one of the top three global suppliers of high efficiency multi-junction solar cells for space and terrestrial applications".

CESI will be participating and sponsoring WFES 2012, and its CEO, Matteo Codazzi, will be addressing the summit on 18th January. The company will also be exhibiting an important range of its services at CESI's stand located in Hall 3 of the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.

Established in 1956, CESI operates in more than 35 countries across the world, with a total network of 1000 skilled and experienced professionals and an annual turnover of over €100m. The company's key clients include governmental institutions, regulatory authorities, major utilities, financial institutions and leading international electromechanical and electronic manufacturers.  CESI provides its clients with technically innovative, cost-effective solutions based on over 50 years' experience to help improve their competitiveness and performance.

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About CESI
CESI was established in 1956 to support the development and the security of operations of the Italian Electricity Grid as well as to provide testing laboratories and certification services for the electromechanical industry. The Company has always played a leading global role as an independent centre of excellence in testing and certification of electromechanical components and in electrical systems R&D.

CESI is a fully independent joint stock company whose shareholders are leading national and international players in the utilities and electromechanical sectors, among them companies like Terna, Enel, Prysmian, ABB, Ansaldo and Alstom.

Over the years, CESI consolidated its recognized leadership, expanding its business internationally acquiring two German companies leader in testing of high, medium and low voltage electrical components (IPH and FGH, located respectively in Berlin and Mannheim) and expanded its business portfolio to environmental and structural civil engineering sectors through the acquisition of ISMES.

For more information please contact:
Ghaith Nazzal
H+K Strategies
Ghaith.Nazzal@hkstrateiges.com
+971 50 453 6710

© Press Release 2012