Abu Dhabi to keep investing in solar energy

Updated : Tuesday January 20 , 2009 11:05:52 AM
ABU DHABI: Oil-rich Abu Dhabi said it will press ahead with plans to develop solar energy, shrugging off a huge drop in oil prices which is cutting the emirate's revenues."The current economic situation has no impact on Masdar's intended and planned projects," said Sultan al-Jaber, chief executive of Masdar, the government-owned Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company charged with developing clean energy.The company's most prestigious project is developing Masdar City in Abu Dhabi -- a 22-billion-dollar cluster city that is to have zero carbon emissions."We still have an appetite to look for further opportunities," Jaber told reporters on the sidelines of the World Future Energy Summit 2009 in the United Arab Emirates' capital."We are looking beyond the current economic terms," he said in reference to the global economic crisis which has reduced demand for oil.The UAE has the world's largest ecological footprint, consuming more natural resources per capita than any other nation, according to a 2008 report by the World Wide Fund for Nature.