Dubai: Al Ghurair Resources LLC is testing coal technology at its oilseeds-crushing plant in Dubai with the goal of reducing its energy usage and curbing carbon emissions.
The Dh60 million ($16 million) coal-based cogeneration plant at Dubai’s main port in Jebel Ali will end the need for 50 metric tonnes of fuel oil used daily now, Jamal Djouhri, chief executive officer of Al Ghurair Resources, said at a press briefing on Wednesday.
“If we can be friendly to the environment, we should,” Djouhri said.
The coal industry is promoting “clean coal” innovations with a claim that they could remove as much as 90 per cent of the carbon associated with burning. However, the technology is unproven and expensive.
The plant which began testing in January will provide electricity to Al Ghurair’s oilseeds crushing plant, which uses about 1 million tons of canola a year from Australia or Canada to produce vegetable oil, Djouhri said. About 60 per cent of output is for animal feed, he said.
Al Ghurair Resources is part of Dubai’s Al Ghurair Investment LLC, founded half a century ago by Abdullah Al Ghurair whose net worth of $4.8 billion makes him the second-richest person in the UAE, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The list doesn’t include royalty or rulers where wealth is held by the state.
