May 21, 2007—Five-star hotels in Dubai use up to 225 percent more energy than their counterparts in Europe, according to a survey by a facilities management company. Farnek Avireal reported that, on average, Dubai hotels used between 650 and 1,250 liters of water per guest and consumed 275-325 kilowatts of power per square meter.
In contrast, similar hotels in Germany used about 350 liters of water and 100 kilowatts per square meter – a difference of 225 percent, it said. Some industry analysts would argue that vast differences in climatic conditions could account for the huge differences, but Markus Oberlin, general manager for Avireal Middle East disagrees: “Hotels in European countries with temperate climates endure cold winters when they need heating and due to global warming, much longer and warmer summers when they need cooling. The energy output differential should not be three-fold.”
Farnek Avireal is a venture between Zurich-based facilities management company Avireal, local facilities management firm Farnek and the Khalifa Juma Al Nabooda Group. For more information, see the Web site.
