The Department's 2050 framework, published in May 2025, targets 65% local content in key supply chains and up to AED 400 billion of foreign direct investment. Every tender the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy publishes treats an In-Country Value (ICV) certificate as a mandatory criterion in the commercial evaluation.
Three doors, not one
The Department is a regulator, and most water spending does not pass through its own tenders. Suppliers must first register with the Department of Government Enablement through the ADERP system, and registration does not guarantee work. New desalination plants are bought by the Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC). For its planned Future RO plant of up to 273,000 m3 a day, the winning developer will own up to 40% of the project company. Network work is let by the TAQA group companies.
Who already holds the big contracts
Acciona received the letter of award for the 60 MIGD Saadiyat Island desalination plant on 27 February 2025, after submitting the lowest bid in July 2024, but dropped the project from its November 2025 trading statement, and trade press reported it may be cancelled. ACWA Power holds 40% of Taweelah RO, rated at 909,000 m3 a day. GS Inima is named as developer of the 318,226 m3 a day Shuweihat S4 plant, planned for operation in 2026. In October 2026 Saur won an operation and maintenance contract for sewage networks in three Abu Dhabi catchment zones, tendered by TAQA Water Solutions as a single package.
What comes next
EWEC's 2023 capacity statement recommended at least 0.28 million m3 a day of further reverse osmosis by 2029. The Department's network price control ends in December 2026.
How the regulator sets network budgets, which projects are open, emerging or strategic, and where to focus first are covered in the full brief. The full report, Department of Energy, Abu Dhabi Emirate: Utility Account Brief, is available for USD 499 at https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/reports/department-of-energy-abu-dhabi-emirate-utility-account-brief. For a free overview, read the Department of Energy, Abu Dhabi Emirate Utility Snapshot at https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/utilities/department-of-energy-abu-dhabi-emirate.