United Arab Emirates Country Intelligence Profile

Executive overview

Key findings

46%, 42%, 11% and 1%: shares of national water demand met by groundwater, desalinated seawater, treated wastewater and surface water (MOEI and EAD, December 2023), against total demand of about 5 billion m³ a year (u.ae)

7.80 million m³ a day: installed desalination capacity by entity as of 2023 (FCSC, as published), of which Abu Dhabi 4.74, Dubai (DEWA) 2.25, Sharjah (SEWA) 0.56 and EtihadWE 0.20; the table omits the 150 MIGD (about 0.68 million m³ a day) Naqa'a plant contracted to EtihadWE, operating since August 2022

180 MIGD: Hassyan reverse osmosis plant, Phase 1 (Dubai); first 60 MIGD block commissioned Q1 2026, all phases scheduled for Q1 2027

AED 30 billion: Dubai's Tasreef stormwater programme; about AED 6.94 billion awarded in three rounds to October 2026 (calculated)

Buyer relevance

Who the report is for

Desalination developers, EPC contractors and lenders

Stage, value, owner and dates for Hassyan, Shuweihat 4, Saadiyat, Al Hamriyah and Fujairah I, and which offtaker buys in each emirate.

Wastewater and drainage contractors

Where Dubai's AED 30 billion Tasreef programme and the AED 80 billion sewerage tunnels PPP stand, and the Ras Al Khaimah wastewater PPP.

Consultants new to the UAE water market

Who runs, regulates and prices water in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and the Northern Emirates after the 2024 TAQA renaming.

Tariff and affordability analysts

Current residential rates in all four systems, the Abu Dhabi social-card allowance and the RC2 price control ending in December 2026.

Decision scope

Questions answered

Where does the UAE's water come from?

Groundwater meets 46% of national demand, desalinated seawater 42%, treated wastewater 11% and surface water 1% (MOEI and EAD, December 2023).

How much desalination capacity is installed?

7.80 million m³ a day in the 2023 entity table (which omits the 150 MIGD Naqa'a plant, operating since 2022), of which Abu Dhabi held 4.74; DEWA reported 555 MIGD in Dubai after Hassyan Block A came online in 2026.

What do households pay for water?

In Abu Dhabi nationals pay AED 2.09 per m³ and expatriates AED 7.84 in the first band (2025); Dubai's DEWA charges AED 7.70 to 10.12 plus a fuel surcharge of AED 1.10 per m³ (September 2026).

Where is the largest contract value outside desalination?

In Dubai: the AED 80 billion Strategic Sewerage Tunnels PPP, with preferred bidders named in June 2026, and the AED 30 billion Tasreef drainage programme, with about AED 6.94 billion awarded.

Inside the report

Inside the complete report

Executive Snapshot

1. Country Water Profile

2. Water Resources and Supply

3. Institutions and Utilities

4. Infrastructure and Major Projects

5. Tariffs and Finance

6. Climate and Resilience

7. Outlook and What to Watch

Source Register

Public preview

What to watch next

2. Water Resources and Supply

A national desalination capacity total after 2023; a groundwater abstraction series against Abu Dhabi's target (§7).

4. Infrastructure and Major Projects

Hassyan's remaining 120 MIGD; Shuweihat 4's commercial operation; formal DSST awards; whether Saadiyat reaches a purchase agreement or is cancelled.

5. Tariffs and Finance

Abu Dhabi's RC2 successor; any annual change to the AED 10.41 cost-reflective rate; DEWA's monthly fuel surcharge.

6. Climate and Resilience

The National Adaptation Plan; MOEI's study of whether the dams need expanding; Dubai's 6 billion gallon aquifer target.

Report page 6: a table of UAE water projects from Hassyan to the Ras Al Khaimah wastewater PPP, with owner, value, scope and stage as of 10 November 2026. — Sample page · page 6 of 13
Infrastructure and Major Projects: owner, value, scope, stage and timeline for the Hassyan, Taweelah, Mirfa 2, Shuweihat 4, Saadiyat, Al Hamriyah and Fujairah I plants and Dubai's drainage and sewerage programmes.

Included

What you receive

The complete PDF report: 13 pages, 9 sections, 8 tables and a register of 43 sources.

This edition

November 2026 edition.

Evidence & method

Evidence and method

Built on the UAE government portal's water and strategy pages, MOEI and Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi releases, Abu Dhabi Department of Energy price-control documents, DEWA's FY2025 and Q1 2026 results, utility tariff schedules from TAQA Distribution, DEWA, SEWA and EtihadWE, project announcements from offtakers, developers and trade press, and UN-Water and World Bank series.

Sources

43 sources, listed in the report's source register. Evidence current to 10 November 2026. Principal data periods: installed desalination capacity as of 2023 (FCSC table on u.ae); DEWA results for FY2025; tariffs in force in 2025 and 2026; UN-Water and World Bank series for 2022 to 2025; project and procurement status checked on 10 November 2026. Currency is UAE dirhams (AED), with US dollars (US$) where the source states them..

Evidence boundaries

This report uses authoritative source material available at the stated research cutoff. It distinguishes published facts, calculated values and analytical interpretation. No independent modelling is performed. Forward-looking analysis reflects published plans, documented trends and stated uncertainties. It does not constitute legal, financial, investment or engineering advice.

Lead analyst

Robert C. Brears

Founder, Our Future Water Intelligence

Robert C. Brears is a water-security specialist and author whose work examines utility governance, infrastructure investment, climate resilience and long-term water-system change for executive and policy audiences.

Decision-focused utility intelligence
Published water-policy author
Evidence-grounded system analysis

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