Siemens has announced plans to invest over $500 million into its digital presence in the Middle East over the next three years.
The initiative was announced during the Siemens Innovation Day, which was held in partnership with Expo 2020 Dubai and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA).
The investment includes building two new MindSphere Application Centres in the UAE, which will be located in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Siemens is planning to set up 20 MindSphere Application Centres across 17 countries and will focus on specific industries which the company specialises in.
The centres will host around 900 software developers, data specialists and engineers who will together with Siemens customers to develop digital innovations for data analysis and machine learning. The facilities will be focused on developing new solutions based on MindSphere, Siemens’ open, cloud-based operating system for the Internet of Things (IoT).
“The Internet of Things has arrived and is set to transform industries and cities. However, many companies are still in the early stages of adopting digital strategies and incorporating them into their business models,” said Roland Busch, Chief Technology Officer and Member of the Managing Board of Siemens AG.
“Siemens has reinvented itself into one of the world’s top 10 software companies and is continuing to expand its digital capabilities. We see vast potential for the adoption of digital technologies in the Middle East and want to support the region’s transformation in various ways, ranging from youth development to setting up our MindSphere Application Centers.”
The MindSphere Application Center in Dubai will handle airports, logistics and cargo to co-develop innovative approaches that improve the movement of people and goods. It will optimise the efficiency of logistics by leveraging advanced analytics and IoT solutions provided by Siemens.
Meanwhile, the Abu Dhabi centre will cater to process industries, mainly focusing on oil and gas, water and waste water, enabling customers to improve operational efficiency and reduce their costs across the whole value chain.
In addition, Siemens is investing in software grants aimed at boosting digital skills among youth in the region; establishing a hydrogen economy with the aforementioned partners; and helping create the most connected expo ever using the MindSphere system.
Furthermore, in co-operation with DEWA and Expo 2020 Dubai, the three parties have taken the first steps to develop a green hydrogen economy in the UAE.
In February this year, the entities signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to kick-off a pilot project for the region’s first solar-driven hydrogen electrolysis facility. Planned to be located at DEWA’s outdoor testing facilities at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, the project wil test and showcase an integrated MW-scale plant to produce hydrogen using renewable energy from solar photovoltaic panels at the Solar Park, store the gas, and then deploy it for either re-electrification, transportation or other industrial uses.
The use of hydrogen technologies has the potential to accelerate renewable energy integration and deployment in the region and pave the way for the transition to a sustainable and green economy in the UAE, according to Siemens.
Siemens is also providing software grants to university youth in the UAE, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. The grants seek to develop the skills required to drive the region’s digital transformation.
