Dubai to list utility Dewa in coming months

The state-backed utility has a bulk of assets in gas-fired and renewable power plants

Jennifer Gnana
Nov 2, 2021

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, the state-backed utility of the UAE's commercial hub, plans to list over the coming months, the country's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance announced on Tuesday.

"We announce today our intention to list the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority in the Dubai Financial Market in the coming months," Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed said in a tweet.

"Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) represents one of Dubai's development hubs, and investing in it is an investment in Dubai's future. We will consider, during the listing, that it be phased, taking into account the size of the huge assets that Dewa includes and its position within the Dubai economy."

The plan to list Dewa comes as Dubai seeks to list 10 government and state-owned companies on the Dubai Financial Market as part of a broader strategy to increase its financial market's size to Dh3 trillion ($816.7 billion).

The emirate's authorities also launched a market maker fund worth Dh2bn on Monday to encourage listings from sectors such as energy, logistics and retail.

A separate fund worth Dh1bn will be formed to attract technology companies to list in the local bourse and encourage innovative products, Sheikh Maktoum tweeted on Monday.

Dewa, Dubai's main utility, has a total energy generation capacity of 12.3 gigawatts and has the capacity to desalinate 470 million gallons of water per day.

Dubai plans to derive nearly three quarters of its energy needs from clean sources by 2050. The emirate is also increasing the use of sustainable transport as part of its 2030 green mobility initiative.

The utility is developing the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which will have a capacity of 5,000 megawatt upon completion in 2030.

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Dewa to release its green hydrogen strategy in 2022

Dewa is looking to tap alternative sources of energy for power as part of its clean energy drive and will release its strategy on hydrogen next year.

The utility is currently undertaking a Dh50 million hydrogen pilot project with Germany's Siemens Energy. The 300-kilowatt green hydrogen plant is being developed at the solar park.

The pilot project being developed by Dewa, Expo 2020 Dubai and Siemens Energy aims to demonstrate how hydrogen can be produced from solar power and will demonstrate how to store and re-electrify the clean fuel.

Dewa is also studying the use of hydrogen in mobility, particularly in public transportation.

The UAE plans to offer hydrogen-powered transportation locally as part of a broader roadmap exploring the potential of the fuel, which has become an important part of regional energy diversification strategies.

Updated: November 2nd 2021, 1:48 PM
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