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Discovering The Sustainable Wonders Of Masdar City | |
| Sumita Pawar |
Masdar City, a sustainable city located in the middle of a desert, is setting the standard for eco-friendly buildings with its structures consuming 40% less energy than industry standards.
Lutz Wilgen, acting head of design at Masdar City, pointed out that some buildings have been able to achieve an energy reduction of more than 40 percent.
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“And that’s on average. Some buildings score a lot better than that. And we have buildings that are going to be Net Zero energy. Renewables will cover the energy demand of those particular buildings,”
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) headquarters with rooftop solar PV array reduces overall energy demand by more than 60 percent. The office building is the first in Abu Dhabi to earn a 4-Pearl Estidama construction rating. Meanwhile, the Siemens building is a LEED platinum-certified, high-performance office building.
“The reason why we look at each building as a unique opportunity is that we like to innovate. We like to experiment. And we do like to test. So, all our buildings that we have available, have looked at various opportunities in harnessing certain components,” Wilgen added.
The city combines traditional Arabic architectural techniques with advanced technology to create a cool and pedestrian-friendly environment.
The International Renewable Energy Agency headquarters, for example, has a rooftop solar PV array that reduces overall energy demand by more than 60%.
In 2021, Cityscape Intelligence named Masdar City the world’s most sustainable city.