West Bay is considered one of Qatar’s most prestigious areas with its luxury apartment towers, high end office space, and prominent hotels.  Demand for rental space in this area consistently outpaces supply, making it a key area of focus for developers with many new projects underway. In line with Qatar’s National Vision 2030 for sustainable development, West Bay already boasts a comprehensive district cooling system delivered by Qatar District Cooling Company, also known as Qatar Cool. However, the country’s ambitious development programs, particularly the large residential and commercial developments in the West Bay area, are expected to continue to drive demand for district cooling services.

Recognized as the most efficient, cost effective and environmentally friendly solution to satisfy Qatar’s growing cooling demands, Qatar Cool has been leading the focus on eco-friendly technologies in the region. As a result, the company’s operations have been steadily growing over the past few years, with it completely selling out the capacity of its two plants in West Bay area which currently serve 46 towers. To satisfy this overwhelming demand, Qatar Cool is preparing to open its third plant in the West Bay area which will provide residential and commercial towers with nearly 40,000 TR of cooling, once complete. Already experiencing a rapidly growing waiting list for its services, the company has been overwhelmed by the response from the developers, attracted by the numerous benefits of district cooling.

“Developers prefer district cooling. Not only does it reduce operating costs and building maintenance costs, but it also helps reduce carbon footprints, which is in line with the country’s national objectives.  District cooling is very favorable because it offers a sustainable and environment-friendly solution to address the increasing cooling requirements in the country.” said Mr. Bader Al Meer, Chairman of Qatar Cool.

District cooling is significantly more cost effective over the long term than conventional solutions. The production of cooling energy supplied to the 46 towers Qatar Cool currently provides its services to in West Bay has exceeded 170 million Ton Hour in 2013, representing around 120 million Kilowatt Hour savings if the cooling load was provided by conventional methods. This has led to an impressive saving of more than 50 million Kilogram of CO₂ emission.  As well as working toward the wider community’s good, centralizing the cooling systems in remote locations frees significant leasable and sellable areas in all buildings, which could be utilized for leisure amenities such as swimming pools and gardens. In a typical residential unit, for instance, a district cooling system can cut energy usage by 40-45%, compared to traditional climate control systems.  Looking at it from a different perspective, in high density areas such as West Bay using traditional air conditioners will cause a lot of noise. With district cooling, it is quiet, centralized in one place and there is zero noise pollution.

There are a lot of new developments coming up in Qatar which will call for the expansion of the district cooling industry.  In addition to its West Bay plants, Qatar Cool also operates the world’s largest district cooling plant ‘The Integrated District Cooling Plant’ (IDCP) at The Pearl-Qatar. IDCP will service the entire residential and commercial facilities, ultimately supplying 130,000 tons of refrigeration to the Island’s 45,000 residents. Qatar Cool’s services are increasingly being recognized to enhance the quality of life for the end users, and go hand in hand with the lifestyle promoted at West Bay and The Pearl-Qatar, both of which are quickly gaining popularity among Qatari investors and expatriates seeking luxurious accommodation and a lavish lifestyle.

“There is still a lot of scope for expansion and so we want to make the best use of it. We are passionate about this industry and offering our clients the highest service standard. We have received multiple international awards, and were especially proud that our district cooling services in West Bay area was recognized by the International District Energy Association (IDEA) as having the Best district cooling System in the world in 2012. In addition to that, our district cooling service in The Pearl Qatar has received an award of excellence from IDEA in 2013. Ultimately, our mission is to pass on the benefits of district cooling and our innovative technologies to society and the environment, which is a win-win situation for everybody” concluded Mr. Bader Al Meer.