Leadership Team

Othman Juma Al Ali serves as the Chief Executive Officer of EWEC, following his appointment to the role in 2019. Under Othman’s leadership EWEC has initiated new projects that will lead the world in their size, scope, and efficiencies, achieved world firsts in water and power projects, and strengthened its national and international partnerships to help deliver a secure water and power supply in the UAE.

Othman has empowered EWEC to pursue transformations and innovative strategies, diversifying its energy mix to become a leader of change within the sector, support the UAE government energy vision, and develop talent for the future. He has extensive experience in ensuring sustainability, revenue growth and cost efficiency whilst transforming and streamlining business support services, and business structures.

Prior to joining EWEC, Othman served as the Chief Financial Officer of the Federal Electricity and Water Authority (FEWA). He has almost two decades of diverse, global experience in both the private and public sectors, having held various positions in the utilities and banking industries across a number of federal government entities.

Othman holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management Information Systems from Sharjah University with a focus on accounting, finance, economics and management. He has also completed the UAE Government Leadership Programme in partnership with Duke, Ashridge and INSEAD.

René Matthies serves as the Chief Financial Officer & Executive Director Corporate Operations at EWEC and leads the company’s Finance, Tax, Treasury, Risk Management and IT/OT/Digital functions.

A highly trained and experienced team leader with extensive knowledge in power generation, René oversees the development of EWEC’s long-term financial strategy while also driving operational and financial performance of the electricity and water generation portfolio.

Prior to joining EWEC in 2019, René held a number of Executive Board roles in the international energy industry working for E.ON, Vattenfall and Accenture in more than 10 countries around the world.

René holds an MBA from Passau University and was trained in executive development programs at Stockholm School of Economics and Duke University.

Easa Alzarooni joined EWEC as System Operations Executive Director in January 2022, following the transfer of the Load Despatch Centre function from TRANSCO.

Easa astutely leads all matters regarding network operations, and the scheduling and despatch of water and electricity from EWEC’s generation fleet and the Abu Dhabi transmission network, including the interconnection to Emirates National Grid (ENG) and GCCIA Interconnection. An insightful expert, Easa brings over two decades’ experience managing and planning electrical networks and his expertise will enhance efficient operations and services.

Easa holds a BSc. in Electrical Engineering from the UAE University, in addition to being certified by the University of Tokyo in Executive Management, and the Harvard Business School in Advanced Management.

Khawla Al Nuaimi serves as the Human Capital Executive Director at EWEC following her appointment in April 2023. A dynamic Human Capital Management professional with more than 18 years of experience, Khawla has implemented effective Human Capital strategies that have driven performance and fostered a culture that enables EWEC to have one of the most highly qualified and talented workforces in the sector.

In addition, Khawla’s creation of effective governance guidelines, policies and procedures and enhancement of EWEC’s performance management and colleague engagement initiatives have had a tangible impact on business operations.
 
Prior to joining EWEC, Khawla was the Head of Human Resource at Aldar Projects, where she developed the company’s HR policies, enhancing Aldar’s internal capacity to meet existing and future requirements. Khawla also held several HR positions at Mubadala Investment Company, where she established and managed HR functions and recruitment.
 
Khawla holds a BBus and Human Resource Management from Hamdan bin Mohamed Smart University, UAE and a Human Resources Practice Diploma from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), UK, and several certifications in Human Resources practices from the Society for Human Resource Management, USA.

Andy Biffen serves as the Asset Development Executive Director at EWEC following his appointment in 2021. A talented team leader with over 35 years experience in the energy industry, Andy is responsible for developing the technical and multi-discipline aspects of EWEC’s major projects.

Andy leads the creation of strong partnerships with a variety of entities to explore new technologies, deliver a secure water and power supply, and continue to drive sustainability and energy efficiency in the region.

He joins EWEC from Reach Solar Energy where he served as the Director and Co-founder based in Australia. Over the course of his career, Andy has held numerous leadership roles within the energy sector in the Middle East region. This includes CEO of Shamal Azzour North in Kuwait, Executive Managing Director at HPC in Bahrain and Executive Advisor at Sumitomo Corporation in Abu Dhabi.

Andy holds a BSc Honours Degree in Energy Technology from Aston University, UK.

Mark Hedges serves as the Asset Management Executive Director at EWEC, having joined in 2021. With over twenty years’ experience in the power industry across multiple functions, a wide range of technologies, and a number of international energy markets, Marks’ driven and effective leadership in change initiatives in many different organisational structures engages teams and ensures the successful delivery of complex projects. 

Mark’s blend of operational, commercial, and sector knowledge ensures that EWEC maintains continuity of supply and maximises flexibility, capacity and efficiency from our power and water generation fleet to integrate new generation into our portfolio and advance our strategic plans to decarbonise the energy sector. 

Prior to joining EWEC, Mark spent over a decade at Centrica, where he held several senior roles in both the UK and USA, including Head of Asset Optimisation at Centrica Distributed Energy and Power, and Director of Propositions Development at Centrica Business Solutions. 

Mark holds a BEng (Hons) in Chemical Engineering from the University of Leeds and an MSc in Environmental Pollution Control from the University of Leeds in the UK.

Laura Thomson serves as the General Counsel for EWEC, following her appointment to the role in 2019. Under Laura’s legal guidance, EWEC has been able to adeptly negotiate and close complex projects and partnerships.

Laura has enabled EWEC’s pursuit of forward-thinking strategies designed to diversify the UAE’s energy mix and support its economic growth. She has extensive problem-solving experience having spent more than a decade in the Gulf region. Her knowledge and acumen have contributed to EWEC’s pre-eminent position as a leader of change within the sector.

Prior to joining EWEC, Laura served as the Head of Asset Management for the UAE at Engie. She has also held directorships in 10 companies, giving her a wide breadth of expertise in the energy sector in the UAE and Bahrain.

Laura holds a LLB (Hons) in Exempting and LPC from the University of Northumbria as well as a Masters, LLM in Oil and Gas law at the Robert Gordon University. Alongside working, she is completing an MBA Essentials at the London School of Economics where she also obtained a Certificate in Managerial Finance.

Bruce Smith is a multi-faceted business leader responsible for the increased expansion and future developments of EWEC’s power and water generation plans. Enhancing EWEC’s capabilities, Bruce has overseen the creation of predictive models using a wide variety of modeling techniques to provide detailed insights, grounded in analytical research, that drive strategic planning, future sector vision, secure capacity, and deliver economic value.

Closely involved in the establishment and development of EWEC, Bruce has been responsible for identifying the need for procurement of capacity from new and alternative sources such as nuclear, solar, batteries and reverse osmosis, as well as developing further enhancements to the operations of current water and power generation plants.

With over 20 years’ experience in the water and power sector, Bruce has held key positions at various sector organisations in the UAE, including TRANSCO. He started his career in the utility sector as an Operations Manager with Anglian Water in 1992 following an MSc in Environmental Engineering from Imperial College, London.

Francois Brice serves as the Fuel & Commercial Executive Director for EWEC. Francois is an inspirational and motivated leader who has developed and implemented gas supply strategies at EWEC which have ensured an effective, constant and optimised supply for the generation of water and power.

With over 20 years of experience in the gas and power industry, Francois has brought expertise from working in interactions with the world’s largest oil and gas companies. Using his extensive experience in commercial negotiation and governance he has developed and maintained long-term relationships with major stakeholders to secure and implement agreements which have significantly enhanced EWEC’s operating capabilities.

Prior to joining EWEC, Francois worked in Total S.A. where he held different positions such as Trader, Economist, Business Developer, Asset Manager and CFO. He has managed the implementation of large projects from business plan to operations and negotiated large hydrocarbon supply contracts.

Francois holds a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering from Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers, Paris as well as a Masters of Science in Project Management & Finance from Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris.

Mohammed AlThaher serves as the Internal Audit Executive Director at EWEC. A proactive analytical and critical thinker with almost two decades of experience in both the private and public sectors, he is responsible for providing independent and objective assessments of internal controls services that are critical to EWEC achieving its objectives.

Mohammed adds extensive value to EWECs' operations through the creation of comprehensive risk-based and objective assurance, advice, and insight ensuring governance and compliance are controlled and met and that accounting procedures are implemented.

Prior to joining EWEC, Mohammed held various positions in large, multi-national consulting, manufacturing and trading industries including Deloitte, PepsiCo, GE Healthcare, Dubai Aluminium, and Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA).

Mohammed holds a B.A. Degree in Accounting from University of Jordan. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) from the State of Colorado USA, Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and Certified Internal Auditor (CIA).