Airport and travel services company dnata, part of the Emirates Group, said its business units have switched their vehicles to run on a biofuel blend, saving 80 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year, as it seeks to reduce its environmental footprint.
The company's brands dnata Logistics, Arabian Adventures, Alpha Flight Services and City Sightseeing saved carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to more than 320,000 kilometres driven by an average petrol-powered car, dnata said in a statement on Thursday.
“We constantly explore and implement emission reduction methods across our fleet and infrastructure to reduce our carbon footprint," dnata group chief executive Steve Allen said.
"The introduction of biofuel to a diverse range of our UAE businesses is an important step in our ongoing journey. It offers a simple and effective method of cutting emissions throughout the fuel lifecycle, without requiring any changes to equipment."
In June 2022, dnata pledged to invest $100 million in green projects, including infrastructure and equipment, as part of a push to meet its sustainability goals.
The company is exploring various energy replacement opportunities after committing to a 20 per cent reduction in its carbon footprint by next year and 50 per cent by 2030, with the $100 million investment setting it on track for those goals, Mr Allen told The National in July.
Dnata Logistics has switched 31 of its lorries to run on a biofuel blend at its Dubai centre, the company said. Its fleet covers up to 217,000km a month, which saves almost 35 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year, the equivalent of eight petrol-powered cars driven for a whole year, it said.
City Sightseeing Dubai, a joint venture with dnata Travel Group, operates three tour routes and uses 21 open-top biofuel buses. These cover an average 76,000 km per month, removing more than 32 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year or the equivalent of the electricity use of four average homes for 12 months.
Alpha Flight Services, dnata’s in-flight catering venture, has already switched five landside vehicles to biofuel blend. It is in the process of transitioning its Sharjah-based airside catering trucks. Alpha now sends its used cooking oil to the biofuel manufacturer and once recycled, it is used in its vehicles.
Alpha’s vehicles cover 27,000km a month, supporting the company’s catering operations that produce 25,000 meals a day. As a result of the initiative, Alpha will save seven tonnes of CO2 emissions per year, the equivalent of charging more than 850,000 smartphones.
Arabian Adventures has also switched the generators at its desert safari camps to a biofuel mix. It is saving almost five tonnes of CO2 emissions per year as a result.
Dnata has also invested in the electrification of its ground-handling fleet across its global airport operations to reduce emissions, with more than 15 per cent of the company’s fleet now electrified.
It also invests in a mix of equipment types and renewable fuel sources to maximise environmental and operational efficiency globally, it said. It already operates biodiesel, electric and hybrid vehicles, and is also actively exploring the use of hydrogen-powered equipment in its operations.
Dnata is also working to reduce waste to landfill and is collaborating with industry stakeholders and policymakers on the treatment of international catering waste. It is targeting a 20 per cent diversion of waste from landfill by 2024.
“We will continue to invest in our operations, including large-scale infrastructure solutions, to further enhance our sustainability performance and achieve our green operations targets," Mr Allen said.
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
SERIE A FIXTURES
Friday Sassuolo v Torino (Kick-off 10.45pm UAE)
Saturday Atalanta v Sampdoria (5pm),
Genoa v Inter Milan (8pm),
Lazio v Bologna (10.45pm)
Sunday Cagliari v Crotone (3.30pm)
Benevento v Napoli (6pm)
Parma v Spezia (6pm)
Fiorentina v Udinese (9pm)
Juventus v Hellas Verona (11.45pm)
Monday AC Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)
MATCH INFO
Scotland 59 (Tries: Hastings (2), G Horne (3), Turner, Seymour, Barclay, Kinghorn, McInally; Cons: Hastings 8)
Russia 0
