Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower) has said operations at its new district cooling plant in Business Bay, Dubai, are likely to begin in March.

It said the Business Bay District Cooling Plant 3 (BB-3) project was moving smoothly and all the mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) and civil structural works had been completed.

The plant will have a capacity of 20,000 refrigeration tonnes (RT).

Empower currently operates two district cooling systems in Dubai’s Business Bay neighborhood, providing 90,000 RT to around 90 buildings and is on track to build a multi-facility district cooling network in the area, which will provide residential, retail and commercial real estate developments with up to 300,000 RT of cooling services.

Its second Business Bay facility (BB-2) has earned a Gold rating in Leadership in Energy Efficient Design (Leed), the first in the Middle East region to get such an accolade.

Empower had awarded the Dh186 million ($50.64 million) contract to Gulf District Cooling for the construction of the (BB – 3) plant in March 2014.

Empower chief executive Ahmad Bin Shafar said: “We have chosen the right partners for the (BB –3) project and we are delighted to see the progress. This will significantly expand our operations in Business Bay, one of the most vibrant areas and ever-expanding business and residential districts of Dubai.

“Every technical aspect is managed and operated to ensure optimum efficiency and sustainability.

Accordingly, BB-3 is also being built to be certified by Leed. The developed infrastructure in Business Bay requires a world-class district cooling plant, and we are fully competent to meet the requirements.”

According to Bin Shafar, work at the site is going on as per schedule. The official said the cooling tower basin work had showed good progress and the high voltage switchgear, transformers and pumps would be delivered to the site by the New Year.

“When operational, BB-3 will be integral to the development of the Business Bay area. We are planning to surpass our previous milestones to set a new bar on how world-class district cooling infrastructure should be designed,” said Bin Shafar.

Empower currently operates more than 1 million RT, providing district cooling services to large-scale real estate developments such as the Jumeirah Group, Business Bay, Jumeirah Beach Residence, Dubai International Financial Centre, Palm Jumeirah, Jumeirah Lake Towers, Ibn Battuta Mall, Discovery Gardens, Dubai Healthcare City, Dubai World Trade Centre Residences and Dubai Design District.