National Central Cooling Company PJSC (DFM: Tabreed) has been awarded‘System of the Year’ by the International District Energy Association (IDEA) in a special ceremony during the IDEA2021 annual conference, which was held in Austin, Texas, under the theme ‘Powering the Future’.

IDEA says that the award “is presented annually to outstading district energy systems for operational excellence, environmental stewardship, exemplary energy efficiency and customer commitment while contributing to the advancement of the global district energy industry.”

It goes on to say: “The System of the Year Award (SOYA) is the highest honor IDEA can bestow on a district energy system. It recognizes an exemplary district energy system providing high-level performance and service that further the goals of the district energy industry.”

Tabreed also took the District Energy Space 2020 (Beyond North America) Silver Award for ‘Number of Buildings Committed’ in recognition of the company’s unprecedented growth during 2020, which included the acquisition of Downtown Dubai and Saadiyat Island schemes.

The two IDEA awards follow Tabreed being honoured as a recipient of the Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award’s Silver Category in the Services Sector, which is presented to organisations that have demonstrated good practice and performance over the preceding three years. The award was presented during a ceremony held by Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry at its Chamberstower on 22 September, and was accepted by Khalid Abdullah al Marzooqi, CEO of Tabreed, and Jean-Francois Chartrain, Tabreed’s Chief Operating Officer.

Al Marzooqisaid these awards are hugely important for the company. “They demonstrate that we are excelling, not just when compared to our peers in the Middle East but the entire world. The Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award is a recognition of our positive impact in the UAE and across the region, and it was an honour to be presented with that in the presence of many of this country’s esteemed dignitaries and business leaders.”

He added: “As for IDEA, this is also a very impactful association and for Tabreed to be recognised in this way is something everyone in the company can take pride in. Operational excellence is a cornerstone for Tabreed and these awards show, beyond any doubt, that we are highly respected on the world stage by our peers and our customers.”

Tabreed’sfive-strong delegation at IDEA2021 included Al Marzooqi, Chartrain, Dr Yousif Al Hammadi, Managing Director of Downtown Cooling, Tabreed,Souad Al Serkal, Vice President – Strategic Communications, and Mahra Al Bloushi,operations engineer. As part of the company’s participation in IDEA2021, Al Marzooqi took part in a panel discussion which featured many of the world’s leading figures in district energy and was centred around current and future industry trends and opportunities.

Al Serkal, one of the event’s keynote speakers, took to the stage to deliver the address ‘The Impact of Strategic Communications on Performance.’ Having implemented a completely overhauled communications plan at Tabreed in 2019, Al Serkal was able to point to real world data that shows a direct correlation between effective communications and a company’s share price.

“By harnessing the power of data and using it to drive our communications strategy,” she said, “Tabreed’s reach increased by 500% globally. Our market share increased in that time, too, but more importantly our share price went up by a staggering 32%. We went through a period of intense growth, so we told the world about it using the most effective possible means, across multiple platforms and media, and analysed the results constantly, tweaking where necessary for maximum impact. And those results speak for themselves.”

For more updates from Tabreed, visit www.tabreed.ae