(MENAFN - Emirates News Agency (WAM)) Empower, the leading district cooling services provider in the region, recorded net profit of AED 162 million for fiscal year ended December 2011, representing an impressive 25 percent increase over 2010. The company's total revenues reached AED 670 million, an increase of 40 percent over previous year. This was announced at a press conference held today (Tuesday, 28 February, 2012) in Grand Hyatt in Dubai.
Ahmed Bin Shafar, CEO of Empower, said: "Empower's operations grew remarkably in 2011 due to higher demand. We also expanded our footprint and enhanced the infrastructure and network in real estate projects to cater to the needs of our rapidly increasing client base. Moreover, the company worked on training its personnel across all levels, which has definitely contributed to these positive results." Talking about the funding for Empower's expanding operations, Bin Shafar said the company's funding options included, internal cash generated from operations, medium to long term funding from banks and financial institutions and shareholders equity contributions.
He added that Empower adopted a clear strategy for 2011, an extension of the company's strategy in previous years. Bin Shafar said this strategy revolved round creating cooling capacities based on the actual demand for district cooling services. The company also increased its personnel by 12 percent in 2011.
Bin Shafar expressed his satisfaction over the company's performance which he said was in line with the growth of the district cooling sector itself in the UAE. He emphasised that the UAE continues to be a leading player in the district cooling industry, not only in the region but also on the global front.
Empower stands at the forefront of district cooling industry in the region. The company has the right caliber and world class infrastructure to lead this industry in the Middle East. Empower achieved a remarkable increase of 12 percent in its cooling capacity, with over 370,000 Refrigeration Tons (RT) in 2011.
Talking about the district cooling industry in the UAE as well as the competition in the market, Bin Shafar said that challenges facing the development of the industry in the UAE include lack of visibility to project development timelines and robust strategy for capacity creation in many of the district cooling companies which has led them to financial difficulties. Empower, however, continued to grow, as demonstrated by its growth in revenues over 40 percent in 2011.
Bin Shafar highlighted the advanced plant and network infrastructure of Empower as well as the skill sets and experience of its personnel, though the company is just nine years old.
Bin Shafar said the Gulf district cooling industry is growing at the rate of 15 to 20 percent and the biggest obstacle in the way of its progress was the absence of long term planning among the companies working in the district cooling industry. He pointed out that the Middle East was still in its infancy in district cooling, compared to the scale of development across the region, and commended the regional governments for encouraging the environment-friendly cooling technologies.
