Clean power jumps to 46% of Abu Dhabi output, EWEC says

Key Points

1. Abu Dhabi's nuclear, solar and wind output grew more than 1000% between 2020 and 2025, EWEC said.
2. Clean sources now supply about 46% of the emirate's electricity, up from under 5% in 2020.
3. The shift lowers long-term fuel exposure and emissions risk for industrial and energy investors in Abu Dhabi.

The latest:

Nuclear, solar and wind generation in Abu Dhabi expanded by more than 1000% between 2020 and 2025, Emirates Water and Electricity Company said. Clean and renewable sources now account for roughly 46% of the emirate’s total electricity production, compared with less than 5% five years earlier. The company attributed the shift to the staged commissioning of the Barakah nuclear plant and two large solar projects.

Details:

• The numbers: Electricity generated from clean and renewable sources reached more than 49,300 gigawatt-hours in 2025, against about 4,100 gigawatt-hours in 2020, according to EWEC. That is the basis for the company’s stated growth figure of more than 1000% across the five-year period, rather than for any single year.
• The nuclear driver: EWEC said the increase followed the gradual entry into service of all four units at the Barakah nuclear power plant between 2020 and 2024. Barakah is the largest single contributor named by the company in the generation shift, alongside the solar additions commissioned over the same window.
• The solar additions: The company also credited expanded renewable capacity through two photovoltaic projects, Al Dhafra Solar and Noor Abu Dhabi. Both are identified as part of the capacity build-out that lifted clean generation alongside nuclear, though EWEC did not break down how much each project contributed.
• The share shift: The move from under 5% to about 46% of total output in five years reverses the emirate’s generation mix, which had been built overwhelmingly on gas-fired capacity. EWEC presented the 46% figure as the current share of total electricity production, not a target for a future date.
• The company line: Mohamed Al Marzouqi, chief asset officer at Emirates Water and Electricity Company, said the scale of progress over the past five years validates the company’s long-term planning approach and its work building an integrated portfolio of clean and renewable sources.
• The investor angle: A generation mix in which nearly half the electricity comes from nuclear and solar reduces exposure to fuel price swings and to carbon-related costs for heavy industry located in the emirate. EWEC did not publish cost or tariff figures alongside the production data.
• What was not disclosed: The announcement set out no forward target for the clean share beyond 2025, no timeline for additional capacity, and no figure for installed megawatts at either solar project. It also did not quantify the remaining share of generation still supplied by conventional sources.

Background:

EWEC is the entity responsible for planning, procuring and buying water and electricity across Abu Dhabi. The Barakah plant, developed over the past decade, became the first operating nuclear power station in the Arab world when its first unit entered commercial service.

Between the lines:

The 1000% headline figure rests on a low 2020 base of about 4,100 gigawatt-hours, so the percentage overstates how unusual the build-out is relative to the absolute volumes involved. The more durable number is the 46% share, which reflects a structural change in the mix rather than a growth rate that can be repeated once Barakah’s four units are fully online.

What’s next

Watch for EWEC’s next procurement rounds and any disclosure of a post-2025 clean-share target, plus full-year generation data confirming whether the 46% share holds once Barakah operates at steady state.