Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) and Shell have held high-level talks to explore cooperation on clean energy and the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in future energy systems, as both sides seek to accelerate the green economy agenda in the UAE.
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA, met with a Shell delegation led by Fakher Bader, Country Chair for Iraq and the UAE. The delegation also included Geraldine Wessing, Chief Political Analyst – Strategy Insights & Scenarios, and Hessa Abdulla, MENA Media Lead.
Discussions focused on Shell’s newly released report, 2025 Energy Security Scenarios: Energy and Artificial Intelligence, which outlines three potential pathways—Archipelagos, Horizon, and Surge—for how AI could reshape the global energy sector. The report is intended to support strategic decision-making amid rapidly evolving geopolitical and technological trends.
Both parties highlighted the potential for collaboration on decarbonisation and circular economy efforts. Al Tayer detailed DEWA’s flagship clean energy projects, notably the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the world’s largest single-site solar facility operating under the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model.
The park currently has 3,860 MW in operation and is expected to reach 7,260 MW by 2030. The upcoming sixth phase will add 1,800 MW using bifacial solar PV panels with single-axis tracking, powering over half a million homes and cutting carbon emissions by 2.36 million tonnes annually. A seventh phase, expandable to 2,000 MW, will include a 1,000 MW battery energy storage system offering six hours of storage, making it one of the largest solar-plus-storage projects globally.
DEWA is also advancing AI integration across its operations. Al Tayer said the utility aims to become the world’s first AI-native utility, with AI embedded into its strategic roadmap and daily functions. DEWA leads globally in multiple performance indicators, including the world’s lowest transmission and distribution losses—2% for electricity and 4.5% for water.
Shell’s Fakher Bader reaffirmed the company’s support for the UAE’s energy transition. “AI is a powerful enabler for system optimization and decarbonisation,” he said. “By engaging in forward-looking dialogue with DEWA, we aim to support a smarter, more resilient energy future.”
