Hamdan bin Mohammed issues a decision regulating the provision of district cooling service in the Emirate of Dubai

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai, issued Council Resolution No. (6) for the year 2021 regarding the regulation of providing district cooling service in the Emirate of Dubai, with the aim of creating a legislative framework that regulates aspects related to the provision of district cooling service In the emirate, it includes activities related to generating, distributing, selling, or billing of cooling energy. The decision also aims to regulate the relationship between the parties to the district cooling service, and to contribute to the implementation of the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy, by promoting energy-saving means in the field of air conditioning and refrigeration. And contribute to protecting the components of the environment and developing natural resources, by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, in addition to encouraging the growth of the green economy to achieve sustainable development in Dubai, and to enhance the operational performance of district cooling systems.

The provisions of the decision apply to persons who provide district cooling service and billing service, which the decision defined as the service of installing meters, issuing invoices and collecting tariffs for district cooling service, according to the quantities supplied to the customer who benefits from this service, whether provided directly by the provider or Billing agent, and the provisions of the resolution also apply to persons who provide these services in Special Development Zones and free zones, including the Dubai International Financial Center.

The provisions of this decision related to obtaining the permit and imposing penalties shall not be applied to government agencies that engage in any activities related to the provision of district cooling service or billing service in accordance with the legislation in force in the emirate, as well as any provision that contradicts the legislation establishing those government agencies or regulating their activities. Provided that the rest of the provisions stipulated in this decision shall be applied to these bodies.

The terms of reference of the Regulation and Supervision Bureau for the Electricity and Water Sector.

The decision stipulated that the Regulation and Supervision Bureau for the Electricity and Water Sector, established pursuant to Executive Council Resolution No. (2) of 2010, is the competent authority to regulate the provision of district cooling and billing service in the Emirate of Dubai. The most prominent tasks and powers are: Determining the standards for the entities that must obtain the permit, setting its conditions and criteria for determining its duration, and issuing the appendix in which the office specifies the technical specifications and requirements to be provided in the district cooling system, including the cooling capacity and place of its establishment, and the boundaries of the area in which the service will be provided. District cooling in it.

 The office is also responsible for reviewing and deciding on the requests submitted to obtain the permit and amending it, in accordance with the approved standards in this regard, setting the standards and controls that must be met by the person authorized to practice his activities, and laying down the rules governing the procedures that the authorized person may take against the dealer in the event that he fails to pay the bills. And submit them to the Supreme Energy Council for approval, as well as control and supervise the person who provides district cooling and billing service, verify the extent of his commitment to the provisions of this decision and the decisions issued pursuant to it, take the necessary actions regarding those who violate them, and collect any data or information from the authorized person, which he sees The office is suitable to support its regulatory and supervisory activities.

According to the decision, the Electricity and Water Regulation and Supervision Bureau has the right to consider any dispute that may arise between the customer and the authorized person, or between the authorized ones, related to providing district cooling and billing service, and trying to settle the dispute amicably through a committee formed by the Supreme Council of Energy by a decision issued by it. In this regard, it specifies the mechanism for the work of this committee and the procedures to be followed before it.

The decision authorized the office to prepare the procedures governing the provision of district cooling and billing services in coordination with the relevant government agencies, and to approve the necessary forms to implement the provisions of this decision, including the model for the contract for the provision of district cooling service to be concluded between the authorized person and the customer, provided that they do not violate the mandated terms of reference. In accordance with this decision, the office has the competencies entrusted to government agencies in accordance with the legislation in force in the Emirate of Dubai.

According to the new decision, it is prohibited for any person to provide district cooling service or billing service in the Emirate of Dubai, with or without compensation, unless he is licensed to work in the emirate from the competent licensing authorities, and has obtained a permit from the Electricity and Water Sector Regulation and Supervision Bureau, and is granted This permission is in accordance with the provisions of this decision and the decisions issued pursuant to it, and in a manner that does not contradict the legislation in force in the Emirate.

The decision specified the procedures for submitting an application to obtain the permit and the office's authority to amend any of the conditions of the permit or the appendix, and to issue an exemption certificate, through which the authorized person is exempted from some of the conditions or technical controls contained in the permit or the appendix, for the period specified by the office.

The obligations of the authorized person to provide the service

and the decision set out a set of obligations that both the supplier and the billing agent who obtained the permission from the office to provide district cooling service or billing service must be followed, including: Obtaining the approval of the government agency concerned with licensing buildings and classifying land use before installing a cooling unit Areas and linking them to the district cooling system, obtaining the environmental permit from the relevant government authority before starting the operational process of the District Cooling Unit, as well as obtaining the approval of the relevant government authorities regarding the design and implementation of the necessary infrastructure for the establishment of the district cooling network, and taking into account the procedures, requirements and requirements of those requirements. Matter.

The provider and the billing agent authorized to provide the service must also provide all the requirements and equipment necessary for installing a district cooling unit, including meters to measure the refrigerant energy consumption, link it to the district cooling system, and use energy-saving systems and means in accordance with the approved standards in this regard. Concerning security and safety requirements, as well as adhering to the conditions of the authorization granted to him, the technical standards and requirements contained in the appendix, and the decision on complaints submitted to him by dealers regarding any dispute that may arise between him and the dealers or between the dealers and his billing agent in accordance with this procedure, according to The office shall approve it, and the licensee must conclude a contract to provide district cooling service with the customer in accordance with the form approved by the Regulation and Supervision Bureau for the Electricity and Water Sector.

Service paths for suppliers

The decision obligated the concerned government agencies and real estate developers to provide the necessary lanes in the areas under their supervision to extend the district cooling networks, and to enable the suppliers to provide the district cooling service, provided that these corridors are implemented in accordance with the routes, plans, specifications, specifications, requirements, procedures, timelines, land requirements and requirements. And real estate developers, provided that the corridors that are provided for the extension of district cooling networks are shared by all suppliers, and the government agencies concerned are not responsible for providing any additional lanes for any provider.

The district cooling service provider may not object to the request to extend district cooling networks on the road to any other provider, unless it is proven to the Electricity and Water Sector Regulation and Supervision Bureau and the competent authorities that the objecting provider has an existing infrastructure on the Al-Tariq campus, and the request of the other provider is of no use. On the technical side, the supplier bears all the costs involved in extending district cooling networks, and fulfilling the obligations imposed by the concerned government agencies and real estate developers in this regard.

The decision stipulated the conditions for measuring consumption and issuing bills, and calculating the tariff for the district cooling service that is provided to customers, on the basis of the cooling capacity, which was defined by the decision as the production capacity of the district cooling system, which is measured in the unit of cooling tons, or the cooling capacity, which the decision defined as the energy produced Regarding water cooling by the district cooling system, or any other basis approved by the Electricity and Water Sector Regulation and Supervision Bureau, the decision also specified the mechanisms for adopting allowances and tariffs by the Supreme Council of Energy for services provided by the supplier or billing agent.

Disposing of District Cooling System assets and in

accordance with the decision, it is not permissible to dispose of any of the district cooling system assets, except after obtaining the prior written approval of the Electricity and Water Sector Regulation and Supervision Office, and these assets include the district cooling unit and district cooling network, according to the details mentioned in the decision. For these assets, the prohibition excludes actions related to the sale or transfer of ownership of assets internally within the authorized party, mortgage of assets to obtain financing for the district cooling system, and the creation of rights to interfere within the scope of the contract to provide a district cooling service, with the aim of ensuring the continuity of the service in the event of the termination of this contract, Replacement or total or partial replacement, provided that this does not affect the ability of the provider to meet the quality and standards of the service it provides.

Penalties and administrative measures

and the decision stipulated that everyone who commits any of the acts stipulated in the table attached to this decision shall be punished in the event that he does not implement what was mentioned in the violation notice addressed to him with the fine indicated in respect of each violation, provided that the value of the fine is doubled in the event that the violation is committed again The same within one year from the date of the previous violation being committed, and not exceeding two hundred thousand dirhams, and the Electricity and Water Sector Regulation and Supervision Bureau, without prejudice to the interest of the customers, may suspend the work of the permit granted to the supplier or billing agent for a period not exceeding three months, or cancel the permit , Provided that the penalties and administrative measures do not prejudice the right of the person affected by the violation to have recourse to the violator for compensation for the damages incurred by him.

Grievance and regularization of conditions The

decision permits everyone who has an interest in making a written grievance to the President of the Supreme Council of Energy, or whoever delegates him, about any decision, procedure, administrative penalty or measure taken against him under this decision and the decisions issued pursuant thereto, within thirty days from the date of his notification of the decision, action or penalty The grievance is decided upon within a period not exceeding sixty days by a committee formed by the President of the Supreme Council of Energy or whoever delegates him for this purpose, and the decision issued by this committee regarding the grievance from the administrative point of view is final.

The decision obligated the person who provides district cooling service or billing service at the date of the implementation of this decision, to adjust his conditions in accordance with its provisions, within a period not exceeding one year from the date this decision comes into force, and the President of the Supreme Energy Council may extend this deadline for a similar period in the cases that This requires, and the authorized person must amend the terms and conditions of the contract concluded between him and the customer before the provisions of this decision come into effect, in accordance with the contract models approved by the Electricity and Water Sector Regulation and Supervision Bureau, when the term of those contracts expires or one year has passed from the date on which this decision comes into effect. which is closer.

The President of the Supreme Council of Energy issues the necessary decisions to implement the provisions of this decision, and any text in any other decision is canceled to the extent that it contradicts its provisions, and this decision will be published in the Official Gazette and enforced from the date of its publication.

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