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Mubadala Investment Company, Abu Dhabi’s strategic investment arm, has signed a preliminary agreement with French utility Engie to develop a digital platform to charge electric vehicles in the UAE capital and across the Middle East .
As part of the agreement, the two companies will collaborate on the development of a joint solution for the installation and operation of charging infrastructure in Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates and will explore areas related to sustainable mobility, Mubadala said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Mubadala is committed to driving sustainability in the UAE and the wider region by laying the foundations and advancing future-focused sectors in technology and mobility,” said Badr Al Olama, Executive Director of Mubadala at UAE Investments.
“Our agreement with Engie will support the development of a digital platform for electric vehicle charging and the creation of accessible, safe and sustainable mobility solutions to support the UAE’s climate action agenda.”
The UAE is stepping up efforts to shift to greener technologies, including through its Net Zero 2050 strategic initiative, which calls for investing 600 billion dirhams ($163.37 billion) in clean energy sources and renewable over the next three decades.
Electric vehicles are expected to play a major role in this agenda, as transportation is the biggest contributor to carbon emissions. Global carbon dioxide emissions hit their highest annual level in 2021, rising 6% to 36.3 gigatonnes, according to figures from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Global electric vehicle sales have more than doubled to 6.6 million in 2021, according to the Paris-based IEA.
The willingness of UAE consumers to use electric vehicles continued to attract investment. Tesla Motors, the world’s largest electric vehicle maker, opened its showroom in Dubai in July 2017, marking its first in the Middle East.
Last month, Abu Dhabi announced it would host the first Middle East and North Africa summit focusing on electric vehicles from May 23-25. The event is expected to attract major players in the booming electric vehicle market.
Developing a digital platform suitable for electric vehicles can play an important role in helping the UAE achieve its net zero goals by 2050, Mubadala said.
The UAE is leading the shift towards independent electric cars in the region and aims to bring “around 42,000 electric cars onto its streets by 2030”, said Ian Harfield, managing director of Engie Energy Solutions.
“This partnership with Mubadala is a commitment of our contribution to the evolution of the UAE towards green mobility.
“Sustainable mobility will emerge as one of the biggest challenges facing urban planners. The adoption of clean fuels and the electrification of public and private transport systems will be key levers to reduce carbon emissions and pollutants in cities,” he said.
Our agreement with Engie will support the development of a digital platform for electric vehicle charging and the creation of accessible, safe and sustainable mobility solutions to support the UAE’s climate action agenda.
Badr Al Olama, Executive Director of Mubadala of UAE Investments
Separately on Tuesday, Mubadala said it invested alongside Vista Equity Partners in sales engagement platform Salesloft.
Global investment firm Vista, with over $93 billion in assets under management, took a majority stake in Salesloft, which helps salespeople and sales teams generate more revenue, in December 2021 in the part of a deal valued at $2.3 billion. Mubadala participated in the transaction.
“Salesloft offers…a platform for sales engagement and drives significant ROI [return on investment] for its customers by increasing the productivity of their sales processes; we are very pleased to invest in their business alongside Vista,” said Ali Osman, Chief Technology Officer at Mubadala.
Founded in 2011, Salesloft has nearly 4,000 customers, including Alphabet’s Google, IBM and Microsoft’s LinkedIn.
Updated: May 10, 2022, 10:23 a.m.
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