Dialogue: Lars Riemann

Lars Riemann, Ramboll group director.

When it comes to green building, what is the Middle East capable of? Ramboll group director for buildings and design Lars Riemann weighs up the answer.

What did you hope to achieve at the recent World Future Energy Summit?
We want to be visible as a company in the market and present our services to potential clients, which is why we exhibited at the summit. Also, a number of our partners were at the summit. We had meetings with these companies to discuss future plans.

What solutions does Ramboll provide as a consultant, which manufacturers do not?
We develop new solutions all the time and, although there are lots of manufacturers who provide a whole solution, these solutions have to be customised in order to be relevant to a specific project.

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There are small scale projects but there are also big master plans. We look at each area to see what resources are available and what each particular project needs. Then we design, based on these needs, a solution. Sometimes a project will need a lot of power, so we would come up with a concept to distribute that power and store the energy from the sun.

How does Ramboll contribute to sustainable building?
Sustainability covers many areas of construction and there is no project where we ignore sustainable solutions. We strive to provide as many green initiatives as we can. Sometimes it’s about using solar panels on a building and other times it’s about minimising surrounding transport and insulating buildings so they can become more energy efficient.

How would you rate green building progress in the Middle East in comparison to Europe and the US?
The Middle East has a long way to go before it will catch up with Europe and the US. It was only two years ago that the region even started talking about green solutions.

The governments have been developing new regulations and this is a very positive step, but there are a lot of issues with these regulations. For example, oil and gas costs are still being subsidised and the electrical power that you get from the grid is very cheap, so it is not feasible for a developer to provide their own energy using solar photovoltaic systems et cetera, because it is very expensive.

However, people still invest in green building initiatives because organisations like Leed require you to look for alternative solutions. So, there are conflicts over the new regulations, but there are groups that are pulling Middle East construction companies in the right direction.

Do the regulations need to be stricter so people will adhere to them?
There is a limit to what steps you can take. If you implement regulations, which are too strict then you will just undermine the market and will not help anybody. You must take one step at a time. I think it will take around ten years for the market to be ready to become fully sustainable.

Will the Middle East follow Copenhagen’s plans to become completely carbon neutral?
It will follow, but it will take more time. I think Copenhagen is a very good example of how an existing city can actually be turned into a carbon neutral environment. It still allows buildings to use and consume the same amount of energy as they always have, but renewable energy is fed into the buildings instead of fossil fuels. There are new renewable energy fuels coming into the market all the time.

What sustainable projects is Ramboll working on at the moment?
There are two master plans, which I will highlight. One is the Zira Island project in Azerbaijan, which is being developed for residential purposes and tourism. It has been possible to develop this into a carbon neutral development. We have developed solutions there to store solar energy. We are also working on a carbon neutral project in Copenhagen, which will be developed over the next 30 to 40 years.

Who is Lars Riemann
Riemann is responsible for facilitating the development of new services and new markets. He is passionate about meeting the challenges of climate changes and lack of resources and specialises in business development, change management and strategic sustainable development. Riemann has project managed and designed projects in more than 20 countries and is a qualified structural engineer.