“It will not be expensive to make these machines. I am trying to make it affordable. For large-scale machines, the money can be recovered in a year or two.” Adnan Fahad Al-Ramzani Al-Naimi
T
he "spark" occurred to him quite late in life, when he was nearing retirement at Qatar Petroleum. “The idea came to my mind in 2006 when I was thinking about solutions to overcome the water problem in Qatar. By 2009, I was convinced that the idea of condensing suspended humidity in the air could work.” Agri-Green, an environment-friendly solution for dry desert lands, was indigenously developed by Naimi, based on the principles of condensation. The machine uses solar and wind energy to draw humidity from air, condense it and convert it to water. It also produces cool air and electricity, which can be used to cool cattle sheds and greenhouses. “It can be an environment-friendly solution for the country’s water crisis and also provide an impetus to the nascent solar industry in Qatar. My aim is to make the country green and support its food security,” says Naimi. Like most inventors, Naimi’s journey was
not smooth. When he discussed the viability of the idea with friends and well-wishers, it was brushed aside by most of them. They warned him against squandering his retirement money. “They thought I was crazy to spend my retirement money on this idea.” Qatari innovators are generally met with cynicism, as a result of which some projects are forgotten after the initial euphoria. “There is no confidence in the capabilities of a Qatari," he laments. Nevertheless, in 2010 he started researching his dream project from his brother-in-law’s workshop. “I funded the project myself without any external funding. I have spent more than QR3 million on this project. "Financial assistance is hard to come by, says Naimi. “People appreciate me, pat my back, but when it comes to financial assistance it is not easy. Maybe I don’t know which doors to knock on. Even the workshop where I plan to start manufacturing now is a rented one,” he says. Today, he is on track to commercialise Agri-Green, which has been recognised
“The idea came to my mind in
2006
when I was thinking about solutions to overcome the water problem in Qatar. By
2009,
I was convinced that the idea of condensing humidity could work, and started work on it.”
qatar today > june 2013 > 71