Dubai is planning to build a power plant, which will be the world's largest carbon capture scheme. Saul Loeb / AFP
Dubai is planning to build a power plant, which will be the world's largest carbon capture scheme. Saul Loeb / AFP

Clean coal plant as important to Dubai as its landmarks



Dubai has become known worldwide for its ambitious projects - the tallest, largest, longest, most expensive or prestigious. Its latest venture matches all those superlatives - but is being adopted more from necessity than pride.

At its latest meeting early this month, Dubai's Supreme Council of Energy confirmed it is pressing ahead with a "clean coal" power plant. This behemoth will not only be the first coal power station in the Gulf, but also potentially by far the world's largest carbon capture scheme, three times bigger than any other currently planned.

Dubai's plant will be an innovative type which converts the coal to a gas before burning it, improving efficiency and reducing pollutants - poisonous mercury and gases responsible for acid rain - dramatically. Only a few of these are operating around the world.

This plant alone would more or less double Dubai's emissions of carbon dioxide, the main gas responsible for global warming. Dubai residents' carbon footprint is already one of the world's biggest.

To prevent this, the power station would have to be fitted with carbon capture - a system to trap the carbon dioxide so that it can be permanently disposed of several kilometres underground, in carefully chosen locations. Several schemes are moving forward in the United States, Canada and China, but there is so far no commercial-scale power plant with carbon capture.

Masdar, Abu Dhabi's clean energy vehicle, announced in January that it would move ahead with carbon capture at the Emirates Steel plant in Mussaffah. Almost 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year will be used to increase recovery at the emirate's oil fields.

But that is tiny compared with Dubai's coal power station, which could produce some 30 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. Some of that could be used to revitalise Dubai's declining oil production. The rest will have to go to Abu Dhabi's fields or other safe disposal sites, as indicated by Nejib Zaafrani the chief executive of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy. "We also aspire to play an active role at the federal level in the UAE's efforts to develop and implement carbon capture and storage activities," Mr Zaafrani said in February.

The project clearly fits in Dubai's tradition of groundbreaking endeavours. It is being pursued for solid economic reasons, not only prestige.

With Dubai's electricity demand continuing to grow, the emirate cannot continue to rely solely on increasing imports of expensive liquefied natural gas (LNG) for fuel. Enhanced energy efficiency will help, but clean coal, solar and nuclear power, presumably in cooperation with the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec), are needed to diversify supply.

In contrast to its bounty of oil and gas, the Middle East has minimal coal deposits. But the fuel is globally abundant and countries such as the US, Indonesia, Australia and now Mozambique export large quantities.

Coal power with carbon capture is on my calculations somewhat more expensive than nuclear power, but cheaper than solar or LNG. Relying solely on Enec's nuclear plants would be risky in the case of delays to the programme or a prolonged safety shutdown.

If Dubai is to secure attractive terms for new gas supply from neighbours such as Abu Dhabi, Qatar or perhaps Iran, or for nuclear-generated electricity with Enec, it needs a convincing alternative. Thus even if the coal plant is never built, its virtual existence is a key part of negotiations.

Building such a plant, operating it, ensuring coal supplies and potentially running the carbon capture system will be a formidable challenge. It will not be as aesthetically pleasing as the Palm Jumeirah or Burj Khalifa or as familiar to residents as the Metro. But it is as necessary to the city and, perhaps, even more ambitious.

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The biog:

From: Wimbledon, London, UK

Education: Medical doctor

Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures 

Favourite animals: All of them 

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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”

Sheer grandeur

The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.

A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.

Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company

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Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House

How to get there

Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
 

SPECS
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Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
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Three trading apps to try

Sharad Nair recommends three investment apps for UAE residents:

  • For beginners or people who want to start investing with limited capital, Mr Nair suggests eToro. “The low fees and low minimum balance requirements make the platform more accessible,” he says. “The user interface is straightforward to understand and operate, while its social element may help ease beginners into the idea of investing money by looking to a virtual community.”
  • If you’re an experienced investor, and have $10,000 or more to invest, consider Saxo Bank. “Saxo Bank offers a more comprehensive trading platform with advanced features and insight for more experienced users. It offers a more personalised approach to opening and operating an account on their platform,” he says.
  • Finally, StashAway could work for those who want a hands-off approach to their investing. “It removes one of the biggest challenges for novice traders: picking the securities in their portfolio,” Mr Nair says. “A goal-based approach or view towards investing can help motivate residents who may usually shy away from investment platforms.”
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The%20Genius%20of%20Their%20Age
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20S%20Frederick%20Starr%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Oxford%20University%20Press%3Cbr%3EPages%3A%20290%3Cbr%3EAvailable%3A%20January%2024%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures

October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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