The robot in action at the Grand Mosque.
A robot in action at the Grand Mosque. The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques said it strives to ensure fresh air inside the Grand Mosque using ultraviolet light air purification technology. Image Credit: General Presidency for Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has inaugurated world’s two largest cooling stations in the Grand Mosque to ensure that worshippers perform their rituals in a cool and fresh atmosphere, local media reported

Ramadan is the peak Umrah season and the plants are instrumental in purifying the air in the Grand Mosque. The Kingdom stressed its keenness to harness highly advanced technologies to provide the best facilities and services to the pilgrims and worshippers at the Grand Mosque in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.

The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques said it strives to ensure fresh air inside the Grand Mosque using ultraviolet light air purification technology. The air is purified inside the Grand Mosque nine times a day, before releasing the well-treated air into the mosque.

The air filtration process, which ensures 100 per cent air purity, is carried out in three stages, namely: moving air into filters using fans, capturing pollutants and particles, and then pushing clean air back into space.

Eng. Amer Al Luqmani, director of the General Administration of Operation and Maintenance, said that there are two cooling stations inside the Grand Mosque, which are the largest of their kind in the world: The Ajyad station produces 35,300 refrigeration tonnes, of which about 24,500 refrigeration tonnes are used, and the new central station has a capacity of 120,000 tonnes of refrigeration.

The presidency provides backup cooling stations next to the main stations to maintain temperatures in the event of a technical failure.

“We are currently in the process of cooling the terminal and supplying it with 5,500 refrigeration tonnes from the Ajyad station, and the air purification filters inside the air conditioning rooms are cleaned on a daily basis throughout the year. They are subject to meticulous maintenance and cleaning operations by highly qualified engineering and technical cadres, who supervise these works to ensure implementation according to technical principles and using the latest technologies,” he said.