Management

Management

Ahmad Bin Shafar

Chief Executive Officer

Ahmad joined Empower at its inception and has been serving as its Chief Executive Officer since inception. Ahmad brings over 27 years of experience in senior management positions including eight years with Standard Chartered Bank in Corporate and Retail Banking, Finance, Marketing and Customer Relations. As Chief Executive Officer, Ahmad provides strategic direction and, under his leadership, Empower has become the World’s Largest District Cooling Services provider, from a capacity perspective, within a short span of a decade.

Ahmad also serves as the Chairman of the board of directors of Empower Logstor Insulated Pipe Systems (ELIPS) since 2007, a strategic joint venture between Empower and Logstor of Denmark, a world leader in pre-insulated pipe systems.

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  Tariq Al Yasi

  Chief Operations & Maintenance Officer



Tariq Al Yasi

Chief Operations & Maintenance Officer

Tariq has more than 25 years of experience in the field of engineering, project managements and operation and maintenance. He holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Tulsa, USA. Prior to joining Empower, Tariq spent about nine years in ZADCO, an Abu Dhabi based Offshore Oilfield Company, as a Team Leader - Well Operation and Reservoir Control, Surface Operation Supervisor, Down Hole Operation Supervisor and Reservoir Engineer. During those 9 years Tariq was a member of a management team reasonable for leading the developments plans for the oil and gas fields, optimizing recovery plans and production enhancement along with the operation and maintenance of the oil production and water and gas injection wells.

Tariq joined Empower in April 2006 as Operations and Maintenance Manager and was promoted to Director of Operations and Maintenance in January 2007 and then to Chief of Operation and Maintenance in year 2010.

He is leading a team of qualified Engineers and operation and maintenance and is responsible for leading the engineering design for the supply of the district cooling services and the extensive operation and maintenance programs/strategies to ensure optimal asset/networks/systems performance, control and monitoring of assets and system operations to ensure compliance to Empower Standards. One of his major tasks is to improve the operational efficiency of the plants so that Empower maximizes its return and the consumers get cost effective and reliable service. Furthermore he’s also responsible for developing technical solutions to improve systems engineering, operation/maintenance/management of Empower metering assets and developing information and data systems to enable continuous process improvements and to ensure top quality provision of district cooling services to Empower customers as per contractual agreements and based on highest industrial and world-class standards.

In Addition to the above, Tariq has also being acting as Head of Project management office since 2016. He’s responsible for the successful completion of all key projects with cost effectiveness, authorized by the organization to meet the customer demands, organizational targets, and overall strategic goals. Key projects basically involves the construction of all projects related to providing district cooling services from chilled water production up to its distribution to customers. This includes District Cooling plants where the centralized production of chilled water occurs, Chilled Water Piping Network to transfer the cooling energy through underground piping system, and Energy Transfer Stations (ETS) located within the customer’s building where the cooling energy transfer to customer side occurs. Other key projects also include the automation and integration of district cooling plants and ETS and the installation of sub-meters which depends upon customer requirements.

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  Ramesh Ramadurai

  Chief Financial Officer


Ramesh Ramadurai
Chief Financial Officer
Ramesh brings in more than 35 years of management experience in the areas of consulting, audit, financial management and planning, risk management, funding and treasury management, project financing, business strategy, project evaluation, business modeling and valuations, mergers and acquisitions, accounting, statutory and management reporting.
Ramesh joined Empower in March 2004 and is responsible for and contributes in achieving its business plans and sets strategic direction and policies relating to financial and treasury management, accounting, billing and IT activities of the organization. Ramesh was also actively involved in a number of merger and acquisition transactions.
Ramesh is also a board member of Empower Logstor Insulated Pipe Systems (ELIPS), a strategic joint venture between Empower and Logstor of Denmark, the world’s largest pre-insulated pipe manufacturer.
Prior to joining Empower, Ramesh was with TECOM, a subsidiary of Dubai Holding which was set up by the Dubai government to support the development of knowledge based businesses in the Emirate of Dubai.
He was also with a large regional group, where he held senior management level positions handling finance and information systems functions. Earlier, Ramesh was with A.F. Ferguson & Co, (an affiliate of KPMG, USA) a leading audit and management consulting firm in India in a consulting role.
Ramesh started his professional career with Whirlpool Corporation in India. He is a Bachelor in Commerce and holds the following professional qualifications from India and USA.
• FCA - Chartered Accountant - Institute of Chartered Accountants of India
• ACMA - Cost and Management Accountant - Institute of Cost Accountants of India
• ACS - Company Secretary - Institute of Company Secretaries of India
• CPA - Certified Public Accountant - AICPA, USA
• CMA - Certified Management Accountant - Institute of Management Accountants, USA
• CFM - Certified in Financial Management - Institute of Management Accountants, USA
• CISA - Certified Information Systems Auditor - ISACA, USA
• CFA - Chartered Financial Analyst - CFA Institute, USA
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  Samer Khoudeir

  Chief Sales & Marketing Officer



Samer Khoudeir

Chief Sales & Marketing Officer

With over 32 years of expertise in Air Conditioning industry, Samer is responsible for Empower’s Sales, Marketing and Customer Service functions and is a driving force to maintain the company's position of being ‘The World’s Largest District Cooling Services Provider’. Samer joined Empower in April 2005, and has been serving as its Chief Sales & Marketing Officer since 2010. He is also the General Manager & a Board Member of ELIPS (Empower Logstor Insulated Pipe Systems), a strategic joint venture between Empower and Logstor of Denmark, the world’s largest pre-insulated pipe manufacturer. Samer contributed significantly towards Empower’s many accolades from International District Energy Association (IDEA), and performed the frontline role in successfully organizing IDEA International District Cooling Conference in Dubai, in 2014, 2016 & 2018.

Samer has a great ability of analyzing the market especially after spending 12 years in the field of Heating, Ventilation, Air conditioning and Refrigeration (HVACR) products and services with Carrier Global Corporation. Samer was honored with numerous awards for his contributions and exceptional performance in growing Carrier’s market share and in its success.

Samer is a member of a number of Engineering Societies including, American Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), IDEA, Syrian Society of Engineers and UAE Society of Engineers.

Samer holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Aleppo University, Syria, and a Post Graduate Certificate in Management from Bournemouth University, UK.

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  Edgar Qureshi

  Chief Commercial Officer



Edgar Qureshi

Chief Commercial Officer

Edgar brings in more than 28 years of management experience in establishing and developing commercial and project management departments in numerous corporate and high profile start-up companies. He has had extensive previous experience in responsible positions in consulting (The Shire Consultancy UK, Mouchel International), contracting (Laing UK, Al Owaidah General Contracting KSA/UAE) and client organizations (Hertfordshire County Council UK and numerous Dubai Holding and Sheikh Mohammed entities) in the civil engineering, infrastructure, utilities and building industries, both in the UK and Middle East.

Prior to joining Empower, Edgar was with TECOM, a shareholder in Empower and a subsidiary of Dubai Holding which was set up by the Dubai government to support the development of knowledge based businesses in the Emirate of Dubai. Edgar joined Empower in June 2004 and his primary role has been to lead and develop the contract, commercial, procurement and legal functions of Empower from its inception into a world class, profitable and environmentally friendly organization. Edgar has also been responsible in negotiating the contractual and commercial terms for all of Empower’s joint ventures and acquisitions, which has significantly contributed to Empower’s growth and success.

Edgar's principal responsibilities, include but are not limited to the following;

• Leading and setting contractual and commercial standards in a relatively embryonic industry, and in doing so contribute to the growth and development of the industry at large;
• Ensuring future revenues are secured and protected through the establishment, development and negotiation of effective and robust customer agreements for district cooling services;
• Ensuring that 'best value' is derived for shareholders by using best practices to effectively and efficiently invest the organization’s capital in establishing and developing district cooling infrastructure within extremely challenging time-scales and immature industry conditions.
• Managing the sustainable growth of the organization through the effective establishment and negotiation of all related new ventures and acquisitions.
• Active Board Member of ELIPS, Empower’s subsidiary company for manufacturing pre-insulated pipes.

Edgar graduated in Civil Engineering from the prestigious Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, University of London and is a professionally Chartered Engineer from the Institution of Civil Engineers, UK. He also has professional qualifications in Contract Law and Administration from the same institution. In addition, he has post-graduate qualifications in management from Strathclyde University, UK.

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  Mohamed Kahoor

  Chief Business Support Services Officer



Mohamed Kahoor

Chief Business Support Services Officer

Kahoor has over 34 years of total experience in the areas of commercials, purchase, administration, stores and stock control, customer services, quality and event management. Kahoor joined Empower in 2005 and has been serving as Chief Business Support Services Officer since 2019. Prior to joining Empower, Kahoor has held senior management positions with TECOM Group and DEWA. At TECOM Group, Kahoor held the positions of Head of Administration, Director of Commercial Operations Services Corp and of Director of Protocol and Customer Services where he carried out various assignments including establishing the Hospitality Services and Protocol Affairs section and Government Operation Services section. Kahoor spent 11 years with DEWA, during which he was responsible for Stores Operations and Inventory Management.

As the Chief Business Support Services Officer at Empower, Kahoor’s principal responsibilities, include but are not limited to the following;

• Guide the team to implement all government polices holistically across all the business requirements of Empower.
• Advise Empower Management on matters related to government and legal in order to achieving strategic objectives of the organization.
• Develop business process polices & procedures for the organization.
• Guide and advise the Quality, Health & Safety Environment team to implement a sustainable QHSE system in projects, District Cooling Plants and Head office operations.
• Lead the team to achieve systematic results for Empower’s Corporate Social Responsibility plans by organizing various events to add value to society.

Kahoor is affiliated to various socio-cultural committees as well in Dubai and holds a Bachelor’s of Science in General Business Administration from the University of Arizona, USA.