The Swiss non-profit BASE Foundation has been selected as a finalist in the Energy category of the Zayed Sustainability Prize 2026, in recognition of its Cooling-as-a-Service (CaaS) business model. Winners will be announced on January 13, 2026, during the official award ceremony in Abu Dhabi.
The CaaS model, developed by BASE through the Cooling-as-a-Service Initiative, enables users to access energy-efficient cooling without upfront investment, using a pay-per-use model. It is currently implemented through the Servitisation for Energy Transition (SET) Alliance in the building sector and the Your Virtual Cold Chain Assistant (YourVCCA) project in agriculture.
According to BASE, the CaaS approach has so far mobilized over USD 160 million in investment, helped save 130 GWh of electricity annually, and avoided 81,000 tons of CO₂ emissions. The model is designed to align financial and environmental incentives, while enabling affordable access to high-performance cooling systems.
Daniel Magallón, Managing Director at BASE Foundation, said: “Being selected as a finalist for the Zayed Sustainability Prize is a powerful recognition of BASE’s mission and the growing movement driving systemic market transformation, positioning low-carbon, energy-efficient cooling as the most cost-effective solution.”
Emma Wink, Sustainable Finance Specialist at BASE and SET Alliance lead, added: “Winning the prize would allow us to accelerate our impact across more markets and reach the communities that need it most.”
