RubeniRubenDubai's growing profile as a global hub for business and investment has received a major boost with the announcement that Rubenius, an alternative energy warehouser and smart grid enabler, has chosen the Emirate as the site of its global operations offices.

Amplex-Emirates, a subsidiary of Rubenius, already has been in Dubai for more than five years.  Rubenius has now decided to headquarter in Dubai – a strategic location between Europe and Asia —largely because of the business-friendly environment in the Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZ), located in the Jebel Ali area at the far western end of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, near Abu Dhabi.

"Dubai’s incentives to companies, such as full exemption from income and corporate taxes, high-tech facilities and infrastructure, and a dynamic real estate sector offering family-oriented conveniences were major factors that influenced our decision," said Claus Rubenius, CEO of Rubenius.

 Established in 1985, the JAFZ today occupies 18 square miles and is home to more than 6,400 companies, including more than 120 of the Fortune Global 500 enterprises. As one of the fastest-growing free zones in the world, over the last four years, the JAFZ claims to have contributed to Dubai’s GDP at 25 percent on a year-to-year basis and sustained more than 160,000 jobs in the UAE.

Global management consultancy A.T.Kearney listed Dubai as the 11th preferred Foreign Direct Investment( FDI) destination globally and the number one in the Middle East in its FDI Confidence Index for 2010.

In addition, according to Rubenius owner Claus Rubenius ,“With the alternative and renewable energy movement gaining momentum in [Dubai], it is possible that, after oil, green energy and clean water will become the next big exports of the UAE. Rubenius is pleased to be part of this prospect," Rubenius said.

His Excellency Fahd Al Gergawi, CEO of Dubai FDI, agreed that this initiative is in line with the UAE’s vision to become a global leader in the alternative energy sector.

Al Gergawi said, "Energy-efficient and clean technologies are fast moving up priority lists worldwide. Dubai and the UAE are leading the region in embracing and advocating smart energy choices. Rubenius choosing Dubai as the ideal platform to develop and export its capabilities means Dubai is acquiring new competencies and the capacity to bring strategic investments to other countries, while being a preferred investment destination."

Rubenius' next steps are to set up a $4 billion, 1-gigawatt (GW) energy storage system, called Energy Warehouse Number 1, in Mexico and follow it up with similar systems in Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa and several other emerging economies around the globe.

"[The fact that Rubenius is establishing its ]headquarters in Dubai is an outstanding success for our joint efforts with Dubai FDI to promote bilateral trade and investment. We are confident Rubenius and its growth plans will continue to create strong grounds for increased engagement between the UAE and Mexico as we move forward," commented Jose Neif Jury Fabre, Middle East Business & Economic Affairs Minister at ProMexico, the trade and investment promotion agency of the government of Mexico.

Rubenius is privately held, with offices currently in the U.A.E, Mexico, Denmark, Russia, China, Ukraine and the United States, and more than 1,900 employees.