22/10/2014 05:50 AST
Sharjah’s environment sector is expected to grow by 15 per cent to almost Dhs1 billion by 2016, up from this year’s Dhs780 million, powered by a portfolio of groundbreaking eco-tourism projects currently under way.
According to a study by the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), the environment sector is one of the emirate’s four key sectors identified as major areas of potential growth. The three other sectors include travel and tourism, healthcare, and transport and logistics.
Highlighting the sector’s promising future, Marwan Bin Jassim Al Sarkal, CEO of Shurooq, said: “Although the environment sector is now worth AED780 million, the Sharjah government is keen to expand further in this field, through attracting foreign direct investment into solar energy generation plants and water desalination projects.”
Al Sarkal indicated that the environment sector is set to grow by 15 per cent, up to almost Dhs1 billion by 2016, as he outlined the immense potential that the emirate of Sharjah has in the eco-tourism industry” especially with the diverse range of eco-friendly projects currently undertaken by Shurooq to leverage this potential.
“The environment sector is composed of three sub-sectors, namely renewable energy, waste management, and energy efficiency. The UAE has one of the highest per capita waste levels per person in the world, with environmental challenges very much on the federal government’s agenda, and Sharjah has carved out its niche as the UAE’s pioneer for renewable energy alternatives,” the Shurooq CEO clarified.
“With the UAE leading the renewable energy charge in the Gulf region, the UAE market potential is predicated to reach Dhs183 billion by 2020, with an annual growth of 15 per cent during the period from 2012-2020,” Al Sarkal said.
He added that the waste management sector is led by Bee’ah-the Middle East’s leading and award-winning fully integrated environment and waste management company in Sharjah, which strives to reach a recycling rate of 100 per cent by 2015, making Sharjah the first zero-waste city in the Middle East. The Shurooq CEO also emphasised that among the key focus areas in Bee’ah’s portfolio is finding new methods to convert waste to energy, which opens a diverse range of investment opportunities.
With regards to energy efficiency, the UAE is adopting an ambitious renewable energy plan as it aims to boost investment in clean energy technology over the next few years and expects to attract AED367 billion of investments in alternative and sustainable energy projects by 2020, including renewable energies, biofuel, urban development projects and wastewater recycling, the Shurooq CEO outlined.
He said that solar power technologies have the highest potential for the UAE and Sharjah, which is a good renewable energy components manufacturing platform for the MENA region, due to its strategic location, logistics infrastructure, cheap labour costs, and developed manufacturing base with ready availability of various components.
The Gulf Today
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