Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has formed a partnership with Etisalat to utilise the Gigabit-capable Passive Optical Network (GPON) on the Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) backbone fibre network on all its 29,000 substations. The first phase will cover 3,200 substations in 4 zones across Dubai. This supports the Dubai Smart City initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Ruler of Dubai, which aims to make Dubai the smartest city in the world in 3 years.

"As part of the Dubai Smart City initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to make Dubai the happiest and smartest city in the world, with the best possible standards of living for its residents, visitors and citizens, we have signed partnership with Etisalat in support of its key role in building the communications infrastructure. Phase one of this project will be completed by the end of 2015," said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO, DEWA.

"Smart grids are a main component of smart cities, and we are building the world's first network that covers everything all the way to the customer, from generation to transmission to distribution. The smart grid will include demand side management, asset management, automation, transfer stations, automation of distribution networks, and the integration of systems and smart meters that will enhance living standards and happiness in Dubai. We will also involve all stakeholders as our partners in dealing with the smart grid and provide services that save time, effort and resources."

"DEWA is investing Dh7 billion in the smart grid initiative to support the Smart Dubai initiative, as well as its smart initiatives to produce solar electricity in buildings, connecting them to the grid, and building the infrastructure and charging stations for electric vehicles," added Al Tayer.

"We are pleased to be a part of this strategic partnership to enable DEWA to provide smart safe and reliable services based on Etisalat's G-PON fibre optic network. This network provides high-speed connectivity and reliability. This partnership supports our efforts to deliver fibre optic and 4G network capabilities to support the public and private sectors in the UAE. This will drive local technology forward to achieve the smart government vision and establish the UAE's leading position on a global level," said Saleh Abdullah Al Abdouli, CEO of Etisalat.

The partnership was signed on the first day of Green Week (21 April 2015) which opened in conjunction with WETEX 2015 yesterday. The inaugural day also included several other MoUs and partnerships between DEWA and leading organisations.
Source: WAM