Energy Guidebook for Industries in the GCC

Doha, September 19 (QNA) -The Doha-based Gulf Organization for industrial consulting (GOIC), is committed to developing Industries in the GCC for more than three decades. With a careful stride and look ahead, GOIC has flourished by understanding the need of industries while advancing our outstanding reputation through industrial integrity. Our value added services has supported the industries and kept them updated about business opportunities on day to day basis. The Center for Industrial Technical Assessment, ITA, is specialized in addressing the needs of energy efficiency programs in the GCC. The ITA is a ten year old program that has been managed by a pool of energy experts either in-house or external consultants. The objective of the center is to identify, evaluate and recommend energy conservation opportunities, a press release GOIC issued here on Wednesday said. Idustry in GCC countries have a vast untapped potential to improve energy efficiency that is urgently needed which compliments energy demand increase to serve growing industries and protect the environment for better future. Industry is an area where the easiest energy efficiency progress may be achieved, because of the large scale of emissions. Currently there is considerable attention to energy efficiency in industry in the GCC region. Industries, on the other hand, are often poorly informed of the savings in energy efficient products. Whenever energy is saved, not only money is saved, but also demand for fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas is reduced. Less burning of fossil fuels also means lower emissions of carbon dioxide ,CO2, the primary contributor to global warming, and other pollutants. GCC countries fall in top 25 countries with carbon dioxide emissions per capita. The current demand for electrical power in the GCC countries is approximately 60,000 MW and is expected to triple over the next 25 years. GCC countries are projected to invest more than US$300 billion in some 20 energy projects with 8 Giga watts of additional capacity projected by 2020. Energy Efficiency and energy saving is a major requirement for industries to be competitive at regional and global levels. In order to improve energy efficiency among industries in the GCC, GOIC is planning to release a guide book titled "An Energy Guidebook for Industries in the GCC". This comprehensive guide will address: Energy conservation options in industries especially for SMEs, Scope for energy saving, Approach to saving energy, Case studies, Best practices, Tools and techniques to approach various problems, Experts analysis and, and Brief on energy policy and applicable standards. The information used in this guide is derived from the Industrial Technical Assessment Center (ITA) at GOIC. The Energy Guidebook explores energy solutions through case studies from more than 30 companies in six countries across the GCC. The Energy guidebook is planned to be released during 1st week of December 2012.The printed guide will be distributed to a large spectrum of industries in the GCC, in addition to Chambers of Commerce, Embassies, Institutions, Governments and Ministries. Guide Book Evaluation and Validation: High level committees of energy experts in the GCC and regional level will be formed to steer evaluate and review the energy guide to ensure its effectiveness. The evaluation process is based on data gathered during site visits and is therefore restricted in detail and completeness because of limitations on available time at the plants. Advantage to industries : The guide gives energy saving options, tools and techniques that can be used to reduce production costs through real company examples. The Energy guidebook is designed for personnel in small to medium sized manufacturing plants to estimate the potential energy and monetary savings of energy efficiency measures. Armed with the guide, companies can improve environmental performance and reduce greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change. Advantage to GCC countries: Over the next decades, as the GCC population grows by 30% to over 50 million inhabitants, the region will witness an increasing strain on its supplies of electricity, food and water followed by Industrial development. The member countries of the GCC are expected to post robust growth over the next decade both in terms of population and GDP. By 2020 the region s real GDP is expected to grow by 56%. Nominal GDP, which was US$341.6 billion in 2000, is forecast to soar to over US$2 trillion in 2020. The ways in which the region faces up to these challenges will have a major impact on its prosperity and quality of life, not only in 2020 but in the decades to come. This guide book addresses the ground work for reaping the highest benefits of the key resources in the next decade, by taking into consideration more energy efficiency initiatives, and explores the saving options to ensure that supply keeps up with demand. It is worth to mention that GOIC comprises each of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Sultanate of Oman , Kuwait and Yemen. (QNA)