The U.A.E. is advancing an ambitious renewable energy agenda and views clean energy as a strategic sector that will drive economic development. In 2017, the United Arab Emirates launched Energy Strategy 2050, the national clean energy plan. In 2023, the Energy Strategy 2050 was modified to include new goals such as raising the percentage of clean energy in the total energy mix to 30% by 2031 and reaching net zero by 2050. The Energy Strategy 2050 still stipulates an energy mix of 44% clean energy and 6% nuclear energy. COP28, held in Dubai in late 2023, solidified the U.A.E.’s status as global leader in the renewable energy market. The U.A.E. Consensus that emerged during the conference, which calls for a transition away from fossil fuels, ensures that clean energy investment will be a bedrock U.A.E. policy.
Solar, Wind, and Hydrogen Power
Solar power is an important component of the U.A.E.’s clean energy strategy, and the U.A.E. has pursued a variety of landmark solar energy projects. The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) is now building a solar park, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, that will have a capacity of 5,000 MW when fully completed in 2030, accounting for 25% of the estimated total energy production of Dubai. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi is home to the world’s largest stand-alone operational solar photovoltaic (PV) plant, the 1.2 GW Noor Abu Dhabi plant. An even bigger plant is under construction.
In order to help meet its renewable energy benchmarks, the U.A.E. government adopted a National Hydrogen Strategy with the broad goal of strengthening the U.A.E.’s position as a producer and supplier of low-emission hydrogen by 2031. Emirati officials believe that hydrogen can play a role in promoting sustainability across many sectors given its broad applications.
The U.A.E. is also seeking to develop its wind power generation. Masdar opened a commercially-sized 104 megawatt wind farm in 2023 that is set to power over 23,000 homes a year. The U.A.E. is relying on technological innovation to commercially scale wind power in a harsh environment.
The U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council encourages the growth and development of renewable energy sources and related knowledge sectors through support for U.A.E. delegations from Masdar and others in the United States. It also supports and participates in key U.A.E.-based initiatives such as DEWA’s Water, Energy, Technology and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) and Masdar’s Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. In 2025, at Abu Dhabi Sustianability Week, the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council hosted Mercedes Vela Monserrate, CEO of the Global Climate Finance Center, for a discussion on mobilizing capital for renewable energy investment.
The U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council launched a “Road to COP28” programming series that previewed the U.A.E. Presidency’s goals and how industry could plug in. This included multiple sessions with COP28 Director General H.E. Majid Al Suwaidi, an event with key U.S. governmental officials involved in COP28, myriad events at COP28 itself, and debriefing of COP28 outcomes in New York.
Nuclear Energy
In December 2009, the United Arab Emirates and the United States entered into a bilateral agreement for peaceful nuclear energy cooperation that significantly enhanced international standards of nonproliferation, safety, and security. Known as the “123 Agreement,” the accord established a required legal framework for commerce in civilian nuclear energy between the two countries. Government leaders and nonproliferation experts consider this agreement to be the “gold standard” in peaceful nuclear cooperation for its commitment to safety, security, and operational transparency.
The development of a civilian nuclear energy sector is part of the U.A.E.’s commitment to diversify energy supply. The Barakah Nuclear Power Plant, the U.A.E.’s first nuclear power plant began commercial operations in April 2021. All four nuclear reactors at the U.A.E.’s Barakah Nuclear Power Plant are now online, providing a quarter of the U.A.E.’s electricity needs. The U.A.E. is advancing artificial intelligence to optimize energy efficiency and innovation in its nuclear power program. Increasingly, nuclear power development is being linked to data center buildout and AI enablement, a trend reflected in the U.A.E.’s global investment goals.
Since the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant commenced commercial operations, ENEC is focused on exploring opportunities in the U.A.E. and overseas to maximize the full value of the expertise developed in nuclear mega project program delivery and technology deployment. It has also contributed meaningfully to the growing momentum for nuclear energy’s potential as a clean energy source. ENEC launched the Net Zero Nuclear platform in September 2023. The platform calls for collaborative action to triple global nuclear capacity by 2050. Act COP28, nuclear energy was included in the global stocktake as a technology to accelerate rapid decarbonization. The U.A.E. Consensus agreed upon at COP28, which includes the unprecedented reference to transitioning away from all fossil fuels, underscores the growing acceptance of nuclear energy as a decarbonization solution.
The U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council played an instrumental role in building U.S. support for the 123 Agreement and remains committed to supporting the development of the U.A.E.’s civilian nuclear program as it is now in its operational phase. Moreover, the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council is proud of the role that its members, such as Bechtel and Westinghouse, have played in helping the U.A.E. realize its peaceful nuclear energy ambitions.
In partnership with the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council led a number of high-level trade delegations to introduce interested U.S. parties to U.A.E. civilian nuclear energy decision-makers at the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) and across the country. During the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council’s first trade mission in 2010, U.S. participants received high-level briefings on the latest updates to the program and insight on the bidding process for secondary contracts and the regulatory environment. The U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council and NEI led another trade delegation in December 2015 that gave delegates the opportunity to visit the Barakah Plant.
The U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council has continued to support the annual ENEC delegation to the United States, including in 2023 with a roundtable briefing with ENEC leadership. Nuclear energy featured prominently in the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council’s COP28 programming and included an industry discussion on nuclear energy’s potential as a zero-carbon energy source.
Key Institutions
- U.A.E. Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure
- ENEC
- Masdar
- Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA)