A forthcoming convention on alternative energies will reflect the growing importance with which many scientists, engineers and government authorities are viewing that sector, the event’s organiser says.
The 2009 Alter Energy Convention, organised by International Conferences & Exhibitions, will be held at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre from October 27 to 29.
The event will examine key issues related to the growth of alternative energies and the Middle East’s aggressive push in that direction.
The alternative energy sector is expected to grow 25 per cent annually and account for almost 70 per cent of the global energy market through 2030. The sector’s current $150 billion share of the estimated $800 billion worldwide energy infrastructure will rise by then to around $600 billion.
Gulf states are expected to collectively spend around $70 billion in energy projects in 2009 to accommodate massive energy consumption. The UAE’s 10 per cent average annual energy use growth alone is double the 4 per cent global rate. This has spurred heavy investments into various sustainable energy initiatives such as the Masdar initiative, where renewable energies and green technologies are set as top priorities on the project’s agenda to reduce the region’s dependence on oil.
Alter Energy will gather international experts, regional decision-makers, and “green” and renewable energy technology developers to discuss and debate the benefits and challenges of alternative energies.
Closer collaboration required
Anselm Godinho, managing director of International Conferences & Exhibitions, remarked: “The economic downturn has reminded the world that it should plan well for the future. We still rely on traditional energy sources to generate 90 per cent of our power requirements. However, most of these are non-renewable and have devastating ecological effects. We need to turn this situation around.”
To be held under the umbrella of the 2009 Oil & Gas Show (OGS), Alter Energy Convention 2009 will discuss and evaluate the regional and global outlook on carbon footprint and energy usage; the importance of oil and gas sector partnerships with alternative energy initiatives; sustainable regional water management, and the latest sustainability projects, techniques and technologies.
The conference-led event’s lineup of speakers includes Paul Dickerson, the US Department of Energy’s former COO of energy & efficiency and renewable energy; Professor Ali Sayigh, chairman of the World Renewable Energy Congress and drector general of the World Renewable Energy Network, UK; Dr Samer Adham, managing director of Global Water Sustainability Centre, Qatar Science and Technology Park, and Dr Hermann Scheer, member of the German Bundestag, president of Eurosolar, general chairman of the World Council for Renewable Energy (WCRE) and president of the International Parliamentary Forum on Renewable Energies.
