World Future Energy Summit opens on Monday

Around 33 official delegations and more than 3,000 delegates will participate in the World Future Energy Summit (WFES) 2011 taking place in Abu Dhabi on January 17-20, said Reed Exhibitions, the organiser.

Held under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and hosted by Masdar, the Abu Dhabi based Mubadala company focused on developing commercially scalable sustainable energy solutions, the World Future Energy Summit is a unique business platform aiding the global development and commercialisation of renewable energy solutions.

The opening day will start at 11am, with a grand opening ceremony beginning with a welcome speech from Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of Masdar, the host of WFES 2011 and then a special address by Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations. The special address will be followed by a number of speeches by participating heads of state and royalty in the morning and three ministers panels later in the afternoon.

Fredric Theux, President of Reed Exhibitions, stated: "We expect the opening day of WFES 2011 to be an absolute success. We are extremely pleased with the number of speakers and participants attending. We view this as a clear sign that the world is truly taking future energy issues and opportunities to heart and that the collaboration of government, businesses and technology providers is key to enabling future energy solutions. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support for this global event."

Each day of the summit has been structured around a key theme, which forms the basis for all discussions and presentations as they relate to renewable energy. The second day of the summit is the business forum, where delegates and exhibitors will communicate valuable ways of growing renewable energy business opportunities. The third day focuses on innovation and clean technology, while the fourth day will discuss financing future energy solutions.

Returning this year will be the World Future Energy Exhibition and the World Future Environment Exhibition together taking place over 40,000 sqm spanning 10 Adnec halls. The World Future Energy Exhibition focuses on advanced and renewable energy, while the World Future Environment Exhibition is dedicated to air, water and waste management technologies and solutions.

Over 600 exhibitors from 40 countries have confirmed their participation including, Deutsche Bank Group, Total, OXY, ExxonMobil, BP Alternative Energy, Schneider Electric, Siemens, Vestas, Daimler and Suntech Power.

For the first time this year delegates have the choice of attending the full four-day event, or just one of the days pertaining to their interest. It is estimated that this year's event will attract more than 25,000 visitors during the four days.

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