Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) | DEWA’s projects promote emiratisation of the energy sector, creating pioneering job opportunities

Dubai seeks to consolidate its role as a major and pivotal contributor in shaping the future of the global economy and trade. This is achieved by enhancing strategies and plans and making sustainable investments to develop a robust infrastructure and an integrated system of highly efficient and reliable services that are among the best in the world. Dubai is also implementing major projects in energy and water production, contributing to enhancing resource sustainability and achieving long-term human development.

Enhancing Dubai’s position as a leading global hub in energy and water production:

Based on this, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) aims to strengthen Dubai’s position as a leading global hub in energy production. DEWA has launched many strategic initiatives and green projects for clean energy production and water desalination. DEWA provides its services to a customer base of more than 1.2 million customers according to the highest standards of availability, reliability, and efficiency. For many years, DEWA has stopped launching new projects to produce energy using fossil fuels and is implementing projects based on the Independent Water and Power Producer (IWPP) model. DEWA has enhanced its partnership with the private sector, which has proven highly beneficial for DEWA and so far, and attracted investments valued at over AED 43 billion.

Etihad ESCO

In 2013, DEWA established the Etihad Energy Services Company (Etihad ESCO) to provide promising investment opportunities for companies specialising in energy efficiency contracts, as well as financial institutions, suppliers of green equipment and technology, developing the energy efficiency market, and creating job opportunities through energy efficiency projects and retrofitting facilities. This is part of DEWA’s efforts to make Dubai a leading example of energy efficiency regionally and globally. This supports the Dubai Demand Side Strategy 2030, which aims to reduce the demand for electricity and water by 30%. Etihad ESCO aims to retrofit over 30,000 existing buildings in Dubai by 2030 to ensure efficiency of energy use.

Green Charger Initiative

DEWA’s EV Green Charger Initiative aims to increase the number of electric vehicle charging stations in Dubai to support the green transition and encourage the use of environmentally friendly vehicles. The initiative has achieved a great success, as the number of green charging stations exceeded 700 in collaboration with stakeholders, including around 400 Green Charging Stations operated by DEWA. This number will increase in the coming years. The initiative aligns with the ‘We the UAE 2031’ vision and aims to achieve government ambitions and reflect positively on society and different sectors in the UAE. The number of electric and hybrid vehicles in Dubai has reached 49,300 vehicles, which supports the transition towards green mobility and increasing the share of EVs to 50% of the total vehicles on UAE roads by 2050.

Positive economic impact

DEWA is implementing its major project, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world, based on the independent power producer (IPP) model. The solar park’s current production capacity is 2,860MW and will reach 5,000MW by 2030, and when completed, the solar park will reduce more than 6.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually. Among the most notable economic impacts of this project is that between 2017 and March 2024, DEWA successfully contracted with global companies to buy 4,709,046 i-RECs (international Renewable Energy Certificates) from the Solar Park equal to approximately EUR 6,968,408.

DEWA has become one of the best utilities in the world, achieving excellent results in several key performance indicators. By investing in the latest and most advanced infrastructure, DEWA has reduced losses in electricity transmission and distribution networks to a leading world record of 2.0%, and the loss in water transmission and distribution networks to 4.6%. DEWA has achieved the lowest electricity Customer Minutes Lost (CML) in the world of just 1.06 minutes per customer. In 2023, DEWA recorded consolidated full year revenue of AED 29.2 billion, a net profit of AED 7.9 billion.

DEWA’s Hassyan desalination project based on the Independent Water Producer (IWP) model is the largest of its kind in the world for water production based on Sea Water Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) technology using solar energy. It is DEWA’s first IWP project. The 180 Million Imperial Gallon per Day (MIGD) Sea Water Reverse Osmosis project has an investment of AED 3.357 billion (USD 914 million). DEWA’s water production capacity will increase to 670 MIGD when the project is completed in 2027.

Providing job opportunities

Through its major projects, programmes, and initiatives, DEWA aims to provide numerous job opportunities across its divisions. It continuously works to attract and empower national competencies and talents. DEWA supports Emiratisation efforts by providing job opportunities to Emiratis and enhancing the capabilities and skills of Emirati youth to increase their competitiveness in the job market in the energy and water fields. DEWA’s Emiratisation strategy includes ambitious programmes to train and prepare national calibre for technical and engineering jobs. DEWA aims to increase the percentage of Emiratisation across all positions and managerial levels and appoint Emiratis in leading professional positions in DEWA’s divisions and departments, DEWA's total employee count stood at 10,726.

DEWA is committed to empowering the youth, honing their skills, and encouraging them to work in clean and renewable energy. DEWA enables them to be active partners who drive positive change, accelerate the energy transition, and achieve net zero.

DEWA’s Research and Development (R&D) Centre provides advanced research facilities and laboratories, allowing work in the fields of solar energy, smart grid integration, energy efficiency, water, space technology, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This supports the development of expertise and achieving the centre’s vision to be a global platform for developing and implementing innovative solutions in future energy and water systems. The centre also aims to consolidate DEWA’s global leadership and excellence and strengthen Dubai’s position as a global hub for research and development.

DEWA’s Innovation Centre aims to attract emerging innovations, create innovative concepts for technology and clean energy, and develop projects to enhance the future of sustainable energy in Dubai and the world. This enhances the centre’s position as an educational hub that hosts events, conferences, seminars, and workshops. The centre supports DEWA’s efforts to develop the capacity of the next generation of innovators in clean energy technologies as well as prepare Emirati calibres empowered with tools for anticipating and shaping a sustainable future for Dubai and the UAE. The Innovation Centre also promotes innovation among individuals and corporates.