His Highness Sheikh Hamdan inaugurates world’s largest solar-powered Green Data Centre in Dubai

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, on Friday inaugurated the green data centre of Data Hub Integrated Solutions LLC (Moro Hub), a subsidiary of Digital DEWA, the digital arm of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA).

Recognised as the world’s largest solar-powered data centre by the Guinness World Records, the facility is located at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world.

The opening event featured the signing of agreements between Moro Hub and its key technology partners and customers including Dell Technologies, Microsoft, Huawei, VMWare, Emirates NBD, Digital Dubai Authority, and Dubai Islamic Bank.

Following the inauguration, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed toured the new facility and was briefed by Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA, on the integrated solutions designed to provide next-generation services in the areas of digital transformation, cloud and hosting services, cybersecurity, smart cities, IoT services and professional and managed services, as well as Moro services supported by ChatGPT technology.

Al Tayer said that the development of the world’s largest solar-powered data centre is yet another achievement that raises the UAE’s profile as a leading global player in advancing sustainability and the green economy.

He said that the centre provides an exceptional model for combining digital technologies with energy technologies. With a world-class low-carbon information technology infrastructure powered by solar energy, the data centre supports the goal of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Emissions Strategy 2050 to generate 100% of its energy production capacity from clean energy sources by 2050.

“Moro Hub’s solar-powered data centre also supports our efforts to achieve the targets of the Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative. This initiative is particularly significant since it comes in a year in which the UAE is hosting the largest international climate conference, the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 28). The new data centre reflects our commitment to support the development of a sustainable economy and our efforts to transform Dubai into a global green economy hub. Moro Hub has always been a frontrunner in promoting digital transformation and sustainability as well as enhancing its integrated solutions to help organisations and companies reach net-zero carbon emissions,” Al Tayer added.

Using 100% renewable energy, the Uptime TIER III-Certified data centre has a capacity exceeding 100 megawatts (MW). Its area will exceed 16,000 square metres.

Reflects Dubai’s Commitment

Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori, Director General of Digital Dubai, said that the green data centre embodies Dubai and the UAE’s commitment to harness innovation and adopt the principles of sustainability in providing services to citizens and residents.

It also reflected the significant role played by public-private partnerships in Dubai’s strategic projects. The project is a bright sign in Dubai’s journey towards a sustainable future that takes into account environmental needs.

He said: “We support this approach as part of our leadership of the digital transformation process in the emirate, which has made the city a global model for adopting creative ideas and projects that contribute to a bright future for humanity.”

“We are glad to sign strategic cooperation with Moro Hub to jointly provide solutions that will elevate and accelerate the region towards digital transformation. Dell Technologies has always been at the forefront of intelligent solutions, and we are confident that our ground-breaking solutions will continue to create opportunities for customers to adapt to digital transformation easily,” said Walid Yehia, General Manager, UAE at Dell Technologies.

“Microsoft remains committed to leading the march towards sustainable digital transformation. Our partnership with Moro Hub is another endeavour to accelerate the growth of sustainable digitisation in the country, driven by our best-in-class technologies. Our digital solutions will enable businesses to avail greater flexibility for managing their operations and strengthen their infrastructure, thereby protecting them from any potential risks that arise from cyber threats,” said Naim Yazbeck, General Manager, Microsoft UAE.

“Huawei has always been committed to supporting its partners with innovative solutions that will help them accelerate digital transformation across sectors. Our longstanding partnership with Moro Hub is an effort to enhance the experience for their customers, offer higher reliability and help contribute effectively to their vision of transforming the UAE business landscape into a sustainable digital model,” said Jiawei Liu, CEO of Huawei UAE.