REGULATORY AND SUPERVISORY BUREAU FOR THE

ELECTRICITY AND WATER SECTOR

REGULATIONS FOR DISTRICT COOLING PURSUANT TO

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL RESOLUTION (6) OF 2021

RD06: METERING, BILLING AND CHARGES

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 Version History

ISSUE MODIFICATION ISSUED APPROVED DATE

NO.
0.1 First Issue J. Grinnell G. Sims 31/01/22

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 1. Definitions and Interpretation

Billing Service Provider – refers to the District Cooling Service Provider or the Billing Agent as the case
may be.
Building – a stand-alone structure comprised of one or more units excluding a single ownership
dwelling such as a villa.
Building Manager – means the entity responsible for the administration and operation of the Building
and its assets such as the Building HVAC cooling system. This may be the property manager, the
Building Owner or in the case of jointly owned properties, any other person approved by RERA.
Master Meter – means an energy meter used for measuring energy transfer from a District Cooling
System to a Building.

Capacity Charge – means the annual charge in AED per refrigeration-ton of Contracted Capacity which
must be approved by the Council.

Consumption – means the Refrigeration Ton-hours used as measured by the Metering Equipment
during a given period.
Consumption Charge – means the charge per refrigeration ton-hour, normally given in AED per TRh
and which must be approved by the DSCE.
Contracted Capacity – means the maximum air conditioning cooling capacity measured in
Refrigeration Tons, to be made available.
Cooling Capacity – means the instantaneous load being delivered measured in Refrigeration Tons.
Customer – means the beneficiary of a District Cooling Service with whom the relevant service
contract is concluded.
District Cooling Services – has the meaning given to it in the Resolution.
District Cooling System – has the meaning given to it in the Resolution.
DSCE – means the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy.
Meter – means a Master Meter or a Sub-Meter.
Penalty Charge – a charge imposed on a Customer for non-conformance with the terms of a Cooling
Service Agreement or with the terms of a Billing Services Agreement. Anyone imposing such a penalty
charges must have obtained approval for its use by the DSCE.
Refrigeration Ton – means a unit of cooling energy
Resolution – means Executive Council Resolution 6 of 2021 Regulating the Provision of District Cooling
Services in the Emirate of Dubai.

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 RSB – means the Regulatory and Supervisory Bureau for the electricity and water sector.
Sub-Meter – means an energy meter used for measuring energy transfer from a Billing Service
Provider to a Unit.
Unit – means a designated part of a Building recognized on the real property register or a single
ownership dwelling such as a residential villa.
2. Scope and Applicability

a. These regulations have been issued pursuant to the Resolution.

b. These regulations apply to any Person furnishing, or intending to furnish, District Cooling
Services or Billing Services to Customers in the Emirate of Dubai.
c. The RSB reserves the right to update these regulations from time to time subject to the
approval of the DSCE.

Part 1 - Meters

3. Requirements for Master Meters

a. All Buildings connected or to be connected to a District Cooling System must be equipped

with a Master Meter upon which charges for District Cooling Services are based.
b. Those Buildings connected to a District Cooling System and without a Master Meter are
required to have a Master Meter installed and used for calculating charges on or before 29th
March 2023. District Cooling Service Providers may only charge for Consumption derived
from Master Meter readings after such time.
c. If the Master Meter fails, or is shown to be faulty in anyway, the District Cooling Service
Provider shall procure its repair or replacement.
4. Requirement for Sub-Meters

a. Where a Building has Sub-Meters installed, the Billing Service Provider shall operate and
maintain the Sub-Meters for all Units.
b. All Sub-Meters that require replacing must be replaced with Sub-Meters that meet the
relevant specifications stated in clause 5.
c. All new Sub-Meters must be installed in common areas to ensure accessibility.
d. The RSB recommends that Building Managers of existing Buildings furnished with District
Cooling Services that are not Sub-Metered consider retrofitting Sub-Meters. If Sub-Meters

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 have not been retrofitted within three years of the date this document comes into force,
Building Managers should explain why that is the case.
5. Specifications and Accuracy

a. All Meters installed after the 29th March 2023, must have stated accuracy performance ratings
and comply with applicable requirements in European Standard EN1434 (part 1-2 and 4-6).
b. Newly installed Meters must be capable of remote reading.
c. Meters shall as a minimum, meet the Dubai Building Code (2021) (Section H4.14.4).
d. All Sub-Meters shall be sealed units to prevent tampering after calibration. The District
Cooling Service Provider or Billing Service Provider, as the case may be, is responsible for
ensuring Sub-Meters remain sealed and free from tampering.
e. For all Sub-Meters installed after the date that these Regulations come into effect, isolation
valves must be installed to allow for unit isolation as well as removal and replacement of the
flow meter.
6. Data

a. The District Cooling Service Provider shall make available to the Building Manager data from
the Master Meter including, chilled water supply temperature, chilled water return
temperature, flow (in volume per minute or second), load (in kilowatts or Tons) and
consumption (in kilowatt-hours or Ton-hours) on an hourly basis.
7. Meter maintenance

a. Periodic inspection and replacement records for Meters shall be maintained by the Billing
Service Provider, for a period of at least two (2) years.
b. Periodic inspection of Meters may be carried out at frequencies determined by the Billing
Service Provider. A periodic inspection of the meter can be carried out remotely in the case
of smart Meters but must include as a minimum, a check to ensure that:
i. Flow is detected and recorded
ii. Supply temperature is recorded
iii. Return temperature is recorded
iv. The calculation of energy transfer is logical and accurate to the meter specifications
v. No fault codes have been recorded on the meter
vi. At least 90% of the intended data transfer has been successful and the Meter has
not failed to transfer data to the relevant reading system on more than six (6)
consecutive occasions.
c. If a Meter fails any of the tests included in the periodic inspection referred to in paragraph
(b) of this clause, the Billing Service Provider shall procure its repair or replacement.

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 d. Where a Sub-Meter fails to accurately record Consumption, the Billing Service Provider may,
for a maximum of two (2) billing cycles, use the Consumption of the Customer for the same
month in the year prior to calculate a Consumption Charge. Where no such Consumption
data is available, Consumption may be estimated based on the prior month. If the Billing
Service Provider fails to arrange for the repair or replacement of the Sub-Meter within two
(2) billing cycles of the fault first being noticed, he may not include Consumption Charges,
estimated or otherwise, in any bill until the Sub-Meter is repaired or replaced so that
Consumption can be reliably obtained.
e. If a Customer requests a Master Meter’s accuracy to be tested, the Billing Service Provider
shall procure that a calibration test is completed by an independent third party. If the
Master Meter is found to perform within a 3% tolerance, the Customer shall bear the
expense of the test. Otherwise, the Billing Service Provider shall be liable for the cost of such
test.

Part 2 - Billing

8. All billing material must be made available in both the English and Arabic language, must be issued
monthly and must contain:

a. General details

i. Name of District Cooling Service Provider or Billing Service Provider

ii. Customer Name and account number
iii. Meter serial number
iv. Contracted Capacity in Tons
v. Billing period
vi. Cooled space in m2
vii. Invoice Date
viii. Due Date

b. Energy Consumption

i. Date and value of previous meter reading

ii. Date and value of current meter reading
iii. Consumption during the billing period in MWh or kWh, and TRh

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 iv. If the bill is based on an estimated Consumption value, parts ii, iii, and iii above must
be postfixed with an “E” next to the value and a key must be provided to make clear
that the bill is estimated.

c. Other information

i. Energy saving tips to inform the Customer how to go about reducing his or her
energy Consumption including a comparison of consumption against other similar
Units.
ii. Monthly Consumption trends charted since the start of the contract.
iii. Contact information for enquiries. As a minimum phone and email details must be
provided
iv. A chart of the chilled water supply and return temperatures accurate to hourly
intervals, together with the contractual chilled water supply temperature for the
Building.
v. A chart of the Cooling Capacity delivered accurate to hourly intervals, together with
the Contracted Capacity.
vi. The difference between the supply and return temperatures (the measured Delta T)
on an hourly basis for the unit concerned and the building.

d. Tariffs that are approved by the DSCE such as

i. Contracted Capacity tariff (AED/TR/yr)

ii. Consumption tariff (AED/TRh)
iii. DEWA Surcharge tariff (AED/TRh)
iv. Metering service tariff (AED/month)

e. Charges

i. Contracted Capacity Charge (AED)

ii. Consumption charge (AED)
iii. DEWA Surcharge (AED)
iv. Metering charge (AED)

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 v. Total current month charge (AED)
vi. Previous balance (AED)
vii. Total Amount Due (AED)

9. Billing for Common Area(s) Capacity and Consumption

Capacity Charges and Consumption Charges incurred to service Common Area(s) must be billed
directly to the District Cooling Service Provider’s Customer and may not be redirected to Unit
occupants by Billing Agents. Under no circumstances may these charges be redistributed to occupants
of Units within the Building unless such redistribution is via the service charge.

10. Retrospective billing

After the first bill has been issued, Billing Service Providers may not retrospectively issue bills for
District Cooling Services or for Billing Services, more than four months in arrears, unless those services
have been previously billed and the charges are carried forward due to Customer non-payment.
11. Meter tampering

If it can be shown to the RSB’s reasonable satisfaction, that the Customer has tampered with the
Meter with the intention of avoiding or reducing Consumption Charges, or to reconnect a supply, the
Billing Service Provider may include a tampering penalty charge so long as such penalty charge has
first been approved by the DSCE.
12. Information Sharing

The Billing Agent must store and make available to the RSB on request:

a. All data collected from Master Meters and Sub-Meters prior to any adjustments being
made.
b. Justification of any difference between the aggregate Consumption of the Sub-Meters with
the Consumption measured by the Master Meter,
c. Monthly Consumption per square metre for each Building,
d. Average Delta T from each Unit and average Delta T of the same Building.

The Billing Agent should be familiar with the Building's other heat loads (such as the Common Areas,
fresh air systems) to justify any differences.

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 Part 3 – Implementation of Charges

13. All tariffs must be approved by the DSCE before being used in the calculation of charges.

14. The Contracted Capacity Charge must be billed monthly in advance and shall be calculated as the
Contracted Capacity in Refrigeration Tons multiplied by the Contracted Capacity tariff in UAE Dirhams
per Ton.

15. The Consumption Charge shall be payable monthly in arrears and shall be calculated as the
Consumption in Refrigeration Ton-hours multiplied by the Consumption Unit Rate in UAE Dirhams per
Ton-hour.

16. The Customer may be required to place a security deposit with the Billing Service Provider which will
be held for the duration of the agreement. It shall be returned in full to the Customer within five (5)
working days of the conclusion of the agreement so long as there are no outstanding debts on the
account. The value of the security deposit required is subject to the approval of the DSCE.

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