Day two in Dubai – and the group of 9 Explorers meet again to deepen their understanding in the bustling business world of Dubai. While it is Sunday in Europe, the working week in the Emirates starts today.
Our driver navigates us through the dense morning traffic in the city out to ENOC, the Emirate National Oil Company, which is responsible for the coverage of fuel, gas and lubricants of Dubai. While they operate over 100 gas stations in the Emirate itself, they are also refiners and worldwide traders in fuels and gas. Jitendra Sharma, the Head of Group Treasury & Insurance of the company explains us in a swift manner how the company’s strategy looks like, how and where they operate and what challenges lie ahead of ENOC. While the Gulf states remain rich in oil, the refining more and more shifts into Asia. Margins in the business are under pressure and the local government, aware of the dependency on oil, seems to have planned ahead. Of course, this also includes diversification into solar or other power supplies. With a big thanks to Mr Sharma, the group then moves on to the next site visit.
A short ride later, we encounter a very specific – for once small – office site. The building itself was 3D-printed in China and then assembled in Dubai. This site shows us, what the new technology can potentially do and amazes us in the lightweight it is built.
Our next stop – actually in walking distance in the Dubai sun – brings us to the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), the special-trade zone of the financial industry in Dubai. The zone was established in 2004 as a financial hub in the MESEA markets and is governed by specific laws and supported by the UEA in this regard. We met (in alphabetic order) Christoph Kueffer, Omar Saeed and Zi Udezue from UBS AG Dubai Branch, a subsidiary of UBS AG. They explained us the specialities of the DIFC within Dubai and the role UBS plays in the international private banking here in the region. Among others, we spoke about specific differences (e.g. Switzerland, Europe and the local customs). It was an insightful discussion led by our three local experts with great knowledge of the local market. And because chatting is even more successful with good food on the table, we moved to a local restaurant and enjoyed regional speciality dishes. With a strong coffee to finish, we say goodbye - appreciative that they found the time to talk to us between their busy schedules.
The next stop is Sustainable City – a complex of houses dedicated to decrease its footprint in several ways. Established about 5 years ago by two architects/investors looking at environmental issues all over the world, the complex boosts about 300 houses and flats that are built in a way that reduces emissions and make it sustainable on a environmental, economic and social level. The architecture for example is all built towards north, hence has less sun and therefore need not as much A/C capacity. Furthermore, they grow their own crops and even the school curriculum hosts classes on environmental and sustainable topics. The complex, even with the ride of about 45 minutes into town, is completely rented and sold out. A success-story that even in an oil-rich country, there is space for sustainability – and some green. Tim Roggmans and Anastaciia Onishchuk (part of the SEED team: Sustainable and Environmental Education) covered the benefits of the complex and the ongoing developments. They made a site tour with us and provided us a first-hand insight in one of the villas on the ground. Thanks again for your dedication and time to show us around.
The day ended at Madinath Jumeirah, a large resort spreading across over 40 hectares of landscapes and gardens designed to resemble a traditional Arabian town.
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Below: 3D printed office of the future (http://www.officeofthefuture.ae/)
