The UAE proudly announced a monumental achievement in renewable energy on Tuesday with the launch of its first facility capable of producing 1 gigawatt of continuous clean energy.
During his address at the World Future Energy Summit 2025, held as part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, highlighted the details of this pioneering project.
This groundbreaking facility, the result of collaboration between the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company “Masdar” and the Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC), marks a significant milestone by providing large-scale, uninterrupted renewable energy.
Masdar has leveraged 5 gigawatts of solar power and a storage capacity of 19 gigawatt-hours to deliver 1 gigawatt of steady, clean energy.
A Qualitative Leap Forward
Al Jaber described this project as a revolutionary step, converting renewable energy into baseload power for the first time. “Battery energy storage is currently the fastest-growing energy technology worldwide. This year alone, a record 100 gigawatts of additional storage capacity will join the electricity grid. However, this covers only a small fraction of total energy demand, driven primarily by the surge in artificial intelligence applications,” he stated.
“Before the advent of AI tools and solutions, energy demand was projected to rise from 9,000 gigawatts to over 15,000 gigawatts by 2035,” he noted, “However, with the exponential rise in AI technologies like ChatGPT, which amass half a billion visits monthly, consuming ten times the energy of a single Google search, projections indicate that energy demand could reach 35,000 gigawatts by 2050, a staggering 250% increase from current levels.”
Long-Term Strategy
As reported by the Emirates News Agency (WAM), the UAE's strategic approach balances economic growth with environmental sustainability. With over AED 150 billion already invested in clean and renewable energy, and plans for an additional AED 500 billion investment in the next 30 years, the UAE is steadfast in its commitment to achieving climate neutrality.
The UAE's proactive stance addresses the pressing challenges of climate change and traditional energy reliance, setting a leading example in the global transition to sustainable energy.
Doubling the Contribution of Renewable Energy
The UAE aims to triple its renewable energy contribution by 2030, reduce emissions to achieve climate neutrality in the electricity and water sectors by 2050, and improve efficiency in energy consumption by 42%-45% compared to 2019 levels. By 2030, the total installed capacity of clean energy is expected to reach 19.8 gigawatts, with clean energy contributing 32% of total generation.
Through international collaborations and local initiatives such as the National Water and Energy Demand Side Management Program and the Building Retrofit Programme, the UAE continues to enhance energy and water efficiency while reducing costs.
