"One of the world's largest oil producers has begun construction on the first zero-carbon city, powered entirely by renewable energy.
Officials from Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, touted plans for a $22 billion development known as the Masdar Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in Cambridge, US, in on 5 May.
"This is going to create huge business and research opportunities to get beyond where we are today," says Khaled Awad, of the government-owned Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company.
UAE is the third-largest oil exporting country in the world and sits on 10% of the planet's known oil reserves. Awad, however, sees the city, which will house an alternative energy research institute, as an investment in alternative energies that will eventually replace oil.
Narrow streets
"For Abu Dhabi to maintain its market share in energy, it must develop other forms of energy," he says.
Groundbreaking construction for the densely packed 7-square-kilometre city on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi began in February. The city will house 50,000 residents and will also include commercial buildings and light industry. The Abu Dhabi government has committed $4 billion for the project and plans to raise another $18 billion.
Solar power, in the form of photovoltaic panels, concentrated solar collectors, and solar thermal tubes will provide 82% of the city's energy needs.
An additional 17% of the city's power will come from burning composted food waste in a highly efficient method that developers say will emit greenhouse gases at a rate 10 times lower than if the food were allowed to decompose in a landfill. The remaining 1% of the city's energy will come from wind turbines."
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