Abu Dhabi's Clean Power Output Rose More Than Tenfold Between 2020 and 2025, EWEC Says

EWEC said on Thursday that clean and renewable generation climbed from about 4,100 gigawatt hours in 2020 to more than 49,300 GWh in 2025. Its latest consolidated operational data show those sources now make up almost 46% of Abu Dhabi's total power generation, compared with under 5% in 2020.

The figures put Abu Dhabi most of the way to its own legally binding goal. The Department of Energy's Clean Energy Strategic Target 2035 calls for 60% of the emirate's electricity to come from clean and renewable sources by 2035. They also matter for the emirate's ambitions in energy-hungry industries, including the large AI data centre campuses planned in the UAE, which will depend on how much low-carbon baseload and solar power the grid can supply.

Most of the increase came from the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, whose four units came online in stages between 2020 and 2024 and now provide a steady supply of emissions-free baseload power. EWEC also pointed to two large solar plants it commissioned over the period, Noor Abu Dhabi and Al Dhafra Solar PV, both among the world's largest single-site solar facilities.

Mohamed Almarzooqi, EWEC's chief assets officer, said the past five years showed "the impact of EWEC's long-term planning and the disciplined integration of a diversified renewable and clean energy portfolio." He said combining nuclear, solar and wind at scale was "reducing carbon intensity while maintaining the reliability and security of supply needed to support the UAE's continued economic growth."

The company did not give a breakdown of the 49,300 GWh by source, nor say how much of the remaining 54% of generation still comes from gas-fired plants. Almarzooqi said EWEC would keep adding renewable and clean capacity and work on making the power system more flexible, which in practice means storage and grid upgrades to handle intermittent solar output.

EWEC said the growth supports both the Abu Dhabi 2035 clean electricity target and the UAE's Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative.