Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, has launched My City Centre Masdar, a Dh300-million ($81 million) community project in Abu Dhabi.

“My City Centre Masdar’s opening marks a key milestone for Majid Al Futtaim as its 25th shopping mall in the region and its first mall in the UAE’s capital,” said Ahmed Galal Ismail, chief executive officer of Majid Al Futtaim – Properties.

 “Expected to be one of the region’s most sustainable malls through the efficient use of resources including energy and water management, My City Centre Masdar underlines Majid Al Futtaim’s commitment to an enhanced living environment driven by the UAE’s long-term sustainability goals,” he added.

Featuring sustainably sourced wood, a range of locally-grown produce and a commitment to reducing single-use plastic bag usage by being the first hypermarket in the UAE not to offer them at the cash counters, the 7,000-sq-m Carrefour hypermarket at My City Centre Masdar is also the brand’s 100th store in the UAE.

As Abu Dhabi’s newest retail and dining destination, My City Centre Masdar features more than 70 stores across 18,500 sq m of gross leasable area including Redtag, Carrefour, Life Pharmacy, Al Jaber Optical, Zaatar w Zeit, Kababji and Cinnabon.

The mall’s 600-car parking bays are shaded by roofing housing photovoltaic cells, generating electricity equivalent to one-fifth of the mall’s annual energy usage. Six per cent of parking has been set aside for electric, hybrid or carshare vehicles – and half of these spaces are equipped with charging points.

The mall plans to recycle at least 80 per cent of its operational waste. Sustainability-focused features include energy-efficient escalators and lifts, and the exclusive use of LED lighting during the basic construction periods and inside shop interiors.

Additionally, all the materials used during construction were manufactured within 500 km travelling distance of the project site. Sustainability features such as these were integral to My City Centre Masdar’s achievement of Abu Dhabi’s Estidama Three Pearl rating, a benchmarking measure equivalent to the Leed (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold rating for exceptional performance in energy and water conservation.