The local Empower has been awarded a AED1.8bn ($490m) contract by local developer Nakheel to provide district cooling services for its Jumeirah Village Circle and Jumeirah Village Triangle developments.

Empower will build up to six cooling plants at the two developments, which will provide up to 260,000 refrigeration tonnes (RT) for 400 buildings.

The district cooling company will produce up to 30,000 RT by the fourth quarter of this year.

Empower currently operates more than 1.1 million RT for several large real estate developments in the UAE.

In May 2014, Empower was awarded a contract to provide district cooling infrastructure and services for the new Design District (d3) development, which will be located close to the Business Bay area of Dubai.

Empower will provide 120,000 refrigeration tonnes (RT) of district cooling services for the Design District scheme, which is being developed by the local Tecom Investments. The total value of the district cooling project is estimated to be AED750m ($204m), and will be financed through Empower’s revenues.

In January 2014, Empower acquired Dubai-based Palm Utilities and Palm District Cooling in an acquisition deal worth $500m.