📖 Quick Reference
Glossary
Every acronym and term you'll encounter in UAE sustainability work, defined in one line.
A
ACWA Power
Saudi Tadawul-listed IPP, largest international IPP in MENA. UAE: MBR Solar phases 2/3/5, Hassyan IWP.
ADNOC
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. Net Zero 2045. CCUS target 10 Mt/yr by 2030.
ADQ
Abu Dhabi sovereign holding company. Founded 2018, ~$200 bn AUM. Owns TAQA 98%, 43% Masdar.
ADX
Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange. ESG Disclosure Guidance with 31 metrics.
Al Reyadah
First commercial CCS plant in MENA, operational since 2016. 0.8 Mt/yr CO2 from Emirates Steel → Bab/Rumaitha EOR.
Al Sa'fat
Dubai Municipality green building system. Bronze mandatory since 2020.
AR6
IPCC 6th Assessment Report. Provides current 100-year GWP values (CH4 fossil = 27.9, N2O = 273, SF6 = 25,200).
B
Barakah
UAE nuclear power plant. 4 × APR-1400 = 5.6 GW. Operated by Nawah Energy (ENEC + KEPCO).
Base year
Reference year for tracking emissions changes. Recalculate for structural changes >5% or methodology updates.
BESS
Battery Energy Storage System. EWEC 24/7 CFE tender targets 19 GWh.
Blue hydrogen
H₂ from natural gas with CCS. UAE near-term scale lever (Fertiglobe blue ammonia).
C
CBAM
EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. Phase-in from 2026. Affects steel, cement, aluminium, fertiliser, electricity, hydrogen imports to EU.
CBUAE
Central Bank of the UAE. Climate Risk Principles published Nov 2023; banks must integrate climate into ICAAP/ILAAP from 2024.
CCGT
Combined Cycle Gas Turbine. UAE's dominant power generation technology.
CCUS
Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage. UAE leadership: Al Reyadah, Habshan, Hail & Ghasha.
CDP
Carbon Disclosure Project. Voluntary climate/water/forests disclosure platform. Scoring A→F.
CO2-WAG
CO2-Water Alternating Gas. EOR technique used at ADNOC's Bab and Rumaitha fields.
COP28
UN Climate COP hosted by UAE in Dubai, Dec 2023. Produced UAE Consensus on transitioning away from fossil fuels.
CSRD
Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (EU 2022/2464). Uses ESRS standards. Wave 2 postponed to FY2027 by Omnibus April 2025.
D
DAC
Direct Air Capture. Tech: Carbon Engineering, Climeworks, 1PointFive. UAE: 44.01 mineralisation pilot in Hajar mountains.
DEFRA
UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Annual emission factors gold-standard (BEIS).
DEWA
Dubai Electricity & Water Authority. Vertically integrated. DFM-listed April 2022.
DFM
Dubai Financial Market. ESG Reporting Guide with 32 indicators.
Double materiality
CSRD/ESRS approach: assess both impact materiality (inside-out) AND financial materiality (outside-in).
DSM
Demand-Side Management. Dubai DSM Strategy 2030 targets 30% reduction in energy + water demand.
E
EAD
Environment Agency Abu Dhabi. Regulator for environment, biodiversity, EIA, climate adaptation.
Ecoinvent
Industry-standard LCA inventory database (~20,000+ unit processes). Cut-off vs APOS system models.
EOR
Enhanced Oil Recovery. CO2-EOR can recover an additional 5–15% OOIP.
EPD
Environmental Product Declaration. ISO 14025-compliant, used in LEED MR + Estidama embodied carbon.
ESCO
Energy Service Company. Etihad ESCO is Dubai's super-ESCO targeting 30,000 retrofits by 2030.
ESRS
European Sustainability Reporting Standards. 12 standards (2 cross-cutting, 5 E, 4 S, 1 G).
Estidama
Abu Dhabi mandatory green building rating system (1–5 Pearls). Authority: DMT.
EWEC
Emirates Water & Electricity Company. Single-buyer for Abu Dhabi.
F
FAB
First Abu Dhabi Bank. Largest UAE bank by assets. PCAF signatory.
Federal Decree-Law 11 of 2024
UAE Climate Change Law. Issued Aug 2024, enforcement 30 May 2025. Penalties up to AED 2M.
Fertiglobe
UAE blue ammonia producer at Ruwais. First commercial blue NH3 cargoes to Japan in 2021.
FLAG
Forest, Land & Agriculture. SBTi sector-specific guidance for land-intensive sectors.
FSRA
Financial Services Regulatory Authority (ADGM). Sustainable Finance Regulatory Framework 2023.
G
G42
Abu Dhabi AI conglomerate. Microsoft $1.5 bn investment 2024. Owns Khazna Data Centers.
GHG Protocol
Global standard-setter for GHG accounting (WBCSD + WRI). Corporate Standard, Scope 2 Guidance, Scope 3 Standard.
Green hydrogen
H₂ from electrolysis powered by renewables. UAE pilots: Khalifa Port (Masdar), MBR Solar Park (DEWA + Siemens).
GRI
Global Reporting Initiative. Most widely used sustainability standard. 2021 revision = impact materiality.
GWP
Global Warming Potential. CO2 = 1; CH4 fossil 100-yr (AR6) = 27.9; N2O = 273.
H
Habshan CCS
ADNOC project capturing 1.5 Mt/yr CO2 from gas processing. COD 2026.
Hail & Ghasha
ADNOC sour-gas mega-project with integrated CCS (1.5+ Mt/yr). FID 2023.
I
ICAAP
Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process. Banks must integrate climate from 2024 (CBUAE).
IES VE
Integrated Environmental Solutions Virtual Environment. Standard energy modelling tool for UAE LEED/Estidama.
IFRS S1 / S2
ISSB standards effective 1 Jan 2024. S1 general; S2 climate (TCFD-embedded).
I-REC
International Renewable Energy Certificate. UAE's main market-based Scope 2 instrument since 2017. Retired via Evident.
ISSB
International Sustainability Standards Board. Founded COP26 Nov 2021. Issues IFRS S1 + S2.
IPMVP
International Performance Measurement & Verification Protocol. Option C = whole-facility weather-normalised.
J
JV
Joint Venture. Critical for organisational boundary decisions in GHG accounting.
K
Khazna PV1
EWEC 1.5 GW solar tender awarded 2024 at $12.88/MWh — current world record tariff. COD 2027.
Khazna Data Centers
UAE's largest DC operator (>200 MW IT load, target 1+ GW by 2030). G42 group.
L
LCA
Life Cycle Assessment. ISO 14040/14044. Tools: SimaPro, GaBi/Sphera LCA, openLCA, One Click LCA.
LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (USGBC). UAE has world's highest LEED Platinum density per capita.
LCOE
Levelised Cost of Energy. Khazna PV1 set $12.88/MWh — current world record.
M
Masdar
Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co. Renewables + green H2. Target 100 GW + 1 Mtpa H2 by 2030. TAQA 43% / Mubadala 33% / ADNOC 24%.
MBR Solar Park
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. ~3 GW operational, target 5 GW by 2030.
MEA
Monoethanolamine. Amine solvent used at Al Reyadah for post-combustion CO2 capture.
MOCCAE
Ministry of Climate Change & Environment (UAE federal). Custodian of Decree-Law 11/2024.
MOEI
Ministry of Energy & Infrastructure (UAE federal). Hydrogen Strategy 2050 custodian.
Mostadam
Saudi green building rating system. Critical for UAE offices serving NEOM, Diriyah Gate.
MRV
Measurement, Reporting, Verification. Required under Cab Res 67/2024 above sector thresholds.
Mubadala
Abu Dhabi sovereign investor (~$300 bn AUM). Owns 33% of Masdar.
N
NDC
Nationally Determined Contribution (Paris Agreement). UAE updated July 2024: 47% reduction by 2035 vs BAU.
NGFS
Network for Greening the Financial System. Climate scenarios for stress testing (Net Zero 2050, Below 2°C, Current Policies).
O
OGDC
Oil & Gas Decarbonization Charter. Signed at COP28. Methane intensity targets, near-zero methane by 2030.
Operational control
GHG Protocol consolidation approach. Account for 100% emissions where you have authority over operating policies.
P
PCAF
Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials. Methodology for financed emissions (Scope 3 Cat 15).
Persefoni
Climate management platform. Free Academy + Climate Fundamentals certificate.
Pink hydrogen
H₂ from electrolysis powered by nuclear. Future Barakah-coupled potential, ~$2.5/kg.
PJSC
Public Joint Stock Company. All UAE PJSCs must publish SCA Sustainability Report (no threshold).
PPA
Power Purchase Agreement. UAE IPPs typically signed 25–30 years with EWEC/DEWA as off-taker.
PQP
Pearl Qualified Professional. Estidama credential for Abu Dhabi projects.
PUE / WUE
Power Usage Effectiveness / Water Usage Effectiveness. Data centre sustainability KPIs.
PVsyst
Industry-standard PV system design software. UAE solar IPP bid yield reports run on PVsyst.
PWPA
Power and Water Purchase Agreement. EWEC standard for IWPPs (combined power + desal).
R
RE100
Corporate commitment to 100% renewable electricity. UAE signatories include Majid Al Futtaim.
RO
Reverse Osmosis. UAE desalination dominant tech (3.5–4.0 kWh/m³ vs MSF 12–15).
S
SAF
Sustainable Aviation Fuel. Etihad demonstrated SAF flights using Masdar Khalifa Port green methanol pilot.
SASB
Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. 77 industry-specific standards. Now under ISSB (since Aug 2022).
SBTi
Science Based Targets initiative. 1.5°C-aligned: 42% absolute reduction by 2030. Paused for upstream O&G.
SCA
Securities and Commodities Authority (UAE). Decision 3/RM 2020 mandates Sustainability Report for all listed PJSCs.
Scope 1
Direct emissions from owned/controlled sources (combustion, fugitive, process).
Scope 2
Indirect emissions from purchased electricity/steam/heating/cooling. Dual reporting required (location + market).
Scope 3
All other indirect emissions in the value chain — 15 categories.
SDA
Sectoral Decarbonisation Approach. SBTi method for sector-specific 1.5°C-aligned pathways.
SLB
Sustainability-Linked Bond/Loan. Aldar issued one in 2023.
SMR
Steam Methane Reforming (H2 production) OR Small Modular Reactor (nuclear). Context matters.
Sphera
Enterprise EHS + GHG accounting platform (SoFi). Used by ADNOC ecosystem. Owns GaBi LCA.
T
Tabreed
National Central Cooling Co. ~1.4 m RT capacity UAE/KSA/Oman/Bahrain/India/Egypt. Mubadala 42%.
TAQA
Abu Dhabi National Energy Company. ADX-listed. ADQ owns 98%. ~22 GW power + 9 m m³/d desal.
Ta'ZIZ
Abu Dhabi industrial chemical zone (Ruwais). ADNOC + ADQ JV. Anchor: 1 Mtpa blue ammonia (FID May 2024).
TCFD
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures. Disbanded Oct 2023; lives on inside IFRS S2.
TNFD
Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures. Nature equivalent of TCFD.
U
UAE Net Zero 2050
First MENA country net-zero commitment, Oct 2021. AED 600 bn investment by 2050.
W
Workiva
Connected reporting platform. CSRD/ESRS/ISSB/GRI/SASB structured reporting with audit trail.