Global Green Telecom Summit: Etisalat Addresses

Etisalat Addresses Global Green Telecom Summit in Dubai

Dubai, 2nd November 2009: Etisalat is putting sustainability within reach of its staff and customers by deploying the latest technologies and focusing on quality and efficiency. This was the theme of a presentation made by the company’s Group Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Nasser bin Obood, on the opening day of the Global Green Telecom Summit which is taking place this week at the Etisalat Academy in Dubai.

Nasser bin Obood explained how the company was supporting the vision and initiatives of the UAE government by offering its employees and customers a green choice.

“The environment is not only important to the UAE today, but has always been seen as critical. This is why the UAE continues to take a positive and proactive position on matters related to sustainability. Etisalat is therefore proud to be able to support the aims of the UAE government and the global community. We are doing this through our own initiatives aiming to reduce our carbon footprint, but also by developing solutions and innovations that help our customers,” Nasser bin Obood explained.

In this respect, he unveiled that Etisalat new Residential Gateway has software developed by SoftAtHome ( French company where Etisalat has 16.6 % shares). This software will allow customers to pre-schedule their wireless Internet connection so that it automatically turns off at selected times, helping to reduce wasted electricity specially at night. This software, will come as part of the company’s Residential Gateway offering which will be available early next year.

He also discussed the various business solutions that Etisalat is offering to corporates including virtualization and data storage, cloud computing, mobile and Internet payment solutions and video conferencing.

Etisalat’s executive then explained the role Etisalat is playing in the nation as a whole – highlighting the major energy savings that are possible through the replacement of legacy copper networks with fiber-optic cables. The entire Abu Dhabi island is set to be upgraded to ‘Green Broadband’ by the end of this year, and the entire country is due to be connected by 2011. Nasser also explained that Etisalat is also supporting Masdar on the development of the world’s first carbon-neutral and zero-waste city.

Nasser bin Obood said: “Etisalat was an early adopter in green technology and we continue to innovate in this area. Our buildings have been designed to early ‘green’ specifications with effective insulation, non-polluting fire extinguishers, smart building technology and architectural design. Further, our investment in fiber-optic technology may see energy savings of up to 70% according to our studies. We are now partnering with the local municipalities and developers to provide the technical infrastructure and expertise on which they can deploy similar energy saving technologies.”

Etisalat is also leading the way in terms of its own buildings and operations and has outsourced the management of its facilities to its subsidiary Etisalat Facility Management (eFM). Etisalat Facility Management is in the progress of implementing a variety of solutions to help reduce waste and energy efficiency for the telco, which already has ‘smart building’ technology installed as standard across its operations.

“The environment is always factored into our business planning, and we undertake rigorous studies whenever we are placing a new mast or install other infrastructure. We are also outsourcing certain functions to enable best-practise in facility and property management to be efficiently implemented across our operations,” bin Obood continued.

Finally Nasser expanded upon the company’s various community initiatives including the award winning ‘Origin’ water conservation programme from Egypt and the long-running campaign to eradicate waste mobile phones and electronic waste from the UAE – ‘Envirofone’.

“Our community initiatives not only raise awareness of problems, but try to create a solution. In Egypt, Etisalat Misr, is helping to provide drinking water to many thousands of people, whereas here in the UAE we have successfully removed 150 tonnes of electronic waste from local landfill sites,” Nasser concluded.

For further information please visit www.etisalat.ae or www.greentelecomsummit.com.