Chiller Fees

Chiller fees are the charges for air conditioning in buildings served by central or district cooling — in Dubai, typically billed by district cooling providers such as Empower or Tabreed, or by the building through its own central plant. They split into consumption charges (what you actually use) and fixed capacity or demand charges that accrue even for an empty unit. The legal friction point in tenancies is allocation: a property marketed as 'chiller free' means the landlord bears the cooling charges, but contracts are often vague about whether that covers only consumption or also the fixed capacity charge, and about who registers the cooling account. Disputes over unpaid chiller bills surface at move-out, blocking deposit refunds and final settlements. Tenants should confirm in writing, before signing, exactly which cooling charges the landlord covers, ensure the account registration matches that agreement, and keep clearance certificates from the cooling provider on exit.