DUBAI- Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) accompanied the participating teams in the second Solar Decathlon Middle East (SDME) on a tour of the Decathlon Village and DEWA’s Research and Development (R&D) Centre at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.

DEWA is organising the SDME in conjunction with Expo 2020 Dubai, under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, as part of a partnership between DEWA; the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE); and the US Department of Energy.

The teams toured the Decathlon village, learned about its facilities and venues for the workshops, seminars, and main activities. DEWA has allocated more than 60,000 square metres at the Solar Park which was selected to host the SDME as it is the largest single-site solar park in the world. The teams also toured the R&D Centre to learn about the latest innovations in clean energy technologies as well as DEWA’s journey, key historical inventions in electricity and the latest developments in renewable energy. The steering committee of the SDME also answered the teams’ enquiries about the competition.

"Hosting the first and second SDME, which is the first competition of its kind in the Middle East and Africa with total prizes exceeding AED 20 million, highlights Dubai’s position as a city of the future that adopts sustainable solutions and provides opportunities for youth from around the world to create and innovate. It also reflects DEWA’s sustainability efforts to achieve the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to provide opportunities for youth to unleash their potential for creativity and innovation. This helps them develop innovative solutions and supports global climate action. It also reflects our belief that youth are the driving force of building a brighter future," said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA.

"DEWA completed its preparations to host the second SDME and aspires to achieve more success in this round, building on the previous round. The first round witnessed several designs for sustainable and smart homes that were implemented in several projects in Dubai. This promotes the Emirate’s position as a sustainable and futuristic city," said Waleed Salman, Executive Vice President of Business Development and Excellence at DEWA.

The list of teams participating in the second SDME includes Team KU of Khalifa University, UAE; Team Sharjah of University of Sharjah, UAE; Team Desert Phoenix of University of Louisville (USA), Higher Colleges of Technology (UAE), American University in Dubai, and American University in Sharjah; Team HARMONY of The British University in Dubai; Team ESTEEM of Heriot-Watt University, UK; Team TAWAZUN of Manipal Academy of Higher Education Dubai Campus; Team UOB of University of Bahrain; Team Solarution of Moulay Ismail University, Morocco; Team SCUTxCCSIC of South China University of Technology; and Team American University in Cairo.

 

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