By : Basel Khaled 

As the current free charging incentive for electric vehicles will expire by the end of this year, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced an extension until the 31st of December 2021. However, this extension only applies to non-commercial users, who register for the EV Green Charger Initiative. The extension allows non-commercial users registered in the EV Green Charger Initiative to charge their vehicles for free at DEWA public charging stations until the 31st of December 2021. This incentive is exclusive to DEWA public charging stations and does not include home charging stations. Commercial registered users such as government, semi-government, and private organisations will be charged the tariff of 29 fils per kilowatt hour, effective from the 1st of January 2020. “We support the Smart Dubai initiative, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the happiest and smartest city in the world; the UAE Vision 2021 which aims to achieve a sustainable environment in terms of air quality, conservation of water resources, increased reliance on clean energy, and green development. DEWA also supports the Dubai Plan 2021, to make Dubai a smart, sustainable and innovative city in managing its resources, improving its quality of life, and consolidating its position as a global model for a green economy. DEWA seeks to increase the number of hybrid and electric vehicles in Dubai, which supports the Dubai Green Mobility Strategy 2030 and the Dubai Carbon Abatement Strategy 2021 to reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA. Al Tayer pointed out that under the umbrella of the Supreme Council, DEWA is working on implementing the Dubai Green Mobility Initiative to promote the use of electric and hybrid vehicles. The Dubai Supreme Council of Energy launched this initiative as per a directive in 2016 to motivate organisations, under its umbrella, to increase the number of hybrid and electric vehicles, and to contribute to the sustainable development of the Emirate by reducing carbon emissions in ground transport, which is the second-largest greenhouse gas emitter in Dubai. Therefore, at least 10% of all newly-purchased cars will be electric or hybrid from 2016 to 2020. This supports the Dubai Carbon Abatement Strategy to cut carbon emissions by 16% by 2021. “DEWA encourages individuals and the community to use sustainable transportation. Since DEWA launched the EV Green Charger Initiative in 2015 and its associated free charging incentive, there has been a significant increase in the number of electric and hybrid vehicles in Dubai. Due to the positive response, we decided to extend the free charging incentive for the owners of non-commercial electric vehicles until the 31st of December 2021. The huge turnout from the community encourages us to launch further initiatives to secure a more sustainable future for generations to come,” Al Tayer said. DEWA has been providing free charging for electric vehicle users registered in the EV Green Charger Initiative from the 1st of September 2017 until the 31st of December 2019, to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles in Dubai.