Senior ExecutivesThe Senior Executives represents the CEO and direct C-level reportees to the CEO as per the organisational structure in 2023. This may differ from the organisational structure as of the date this report is published.

Marco Arcelli is the Chief Executive Officer and responsible for overseeing the strategy and operations of ACWA Power’s growing global footprint and ensuring its continued growth and success worldwide.

He is a seasoned C‑level executive with 30 years of international experience in energy and infrastructure, retail, and digital innovation and has played a crucial role in the strategic positioning and growth of multinational companies. As an energy expert, Marco has held various leadership positions, including CEO of Enel Trade and EVP Upstream Gas, CEO of Enel’s North American and operations, as well as Executive Chair of EP New Energy.

Marco also has in‑depth expertise in turn‑around and operations, having led two corporate transformations highlighted in case studies by IESE and Harvard Business School. He is also a peer reviewer for the International Energy Agency.

He has also made significant contributions in public affairs and government relations, managing policy negotiations at the country and EU level. He is a dedicated advocate of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues and has served as an Audit and HR Committee member for listed companies in Germany and Russia.

An active member of numerous Boards, Marco is also a mentor for organisations supporting women in business and young talents.

He holds a Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Università degli Studi di Genova, Italy and has completed the Harvard Advanced Management Program.

Mr Abdulhameed Al Muhaidib serves as the Chief Financial Officer at ACWA Power.

Mr Abdulhameed Al Muhaidib is a skilled leader having held several positions in both Business and Finance at ACWA Power since 2008.

During the initial years of his career within the Group, Abdulhameed worked in Corporate Finance and served several roles in Project boards and committees, including NOMAC. Abdulhameed was then primarily involved in managing projects under execution in the UAE, including Noor Energy 1, which is the world largest CSP project. Before joining the Company, he worked at HSBC Middle East/Saudi Arabia in Global Investment Banking and Advisory.

Abdulhameed serves as Board member, audit committee member and risk committee member in many organisations including HSBC Saudi Arabia, Saudi Awwal Bank (SAB), Saudi Tadawul Group and several ACWA Power subsidiaries.

Abdulhameed holds a BBA Finance Major from University of Miami as well as an MBA from Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business and Management. He was also selected and completed the KSA Leadership 2030 Program sponsored by HRH Mohammed bin Salman Foundation (MISK).

Kashif Rana serves as the Chief Portfolio Management Officer (CPMO) of ACWA Power.

Having joined the Group as Director of Accounting, Controls and Taxation in 2009, Kashif has successfully led finance activities for the Group and its investments in developing and implementing best practice regarding long‑term planning, corporate finance, audits, accounting, reporting, insurance, corporate legal, treasury, and tax structuring, in addition to leading private security offerings with sovereign institutes of Saudi Arabia.

Prior to his appointment as CPMO, Mr Rana held the position of Chief Financial Officer at ACWA Power.

With 20 years’ experience in the power and water sector, high on his list of significant achievements, is leading the extremely successful IPO and public listing of ACWA Power on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) as well as managing the equity investors and transition to operating as a listed company.

Before joining ACWA Power, Mr Rana served as the CFO of AES Middle East.

Mr Rana sits on the board of several companies owned and operated by ACWA Power. He is a certified Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan.

Thomas Brostrom serves as the Chief Business Development and Investment Officer at ACWA Power, leading the Company’s investment strategy and driving its ambitious global growth plan to optimise value and profitability for shareholders.

As a seasoned leader with over two decades of experience in the renewable energy sector, Brostrom has honed his expertise in managing growth through acquisitions, divestments, and organic expansion, all supported by a robust financial background.

Prior to joining ACWA Power, he held the position of Executive Vice President for Renewable Generation at Shell Plc in London, where he oversaw the global renewable generation business. Additionally, he served as President of Orsted’s North American division, a prominent global offshore wind power firm.

Brostrom actively contributes to the boards of various renewables‑led organisations, including the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), The Massachusetts Business Roundtable, and RenewableUK.

He holds a Master of Science in Finance and International Business from Aarhus School of Business and is recognised as a chartered financial analyst (CFA), certified by the esteemed CFA Institute.

Bart Boesmans is the Chief Technology Officer at ACWA power and is leading technology development at ACWA power.

He brings over 25 years of international experience in the electrical power industry having held operational and executive leadership roles in a range of areas including engineering, business development, project execution and asset management.

Prior to joining ACWA Power, Bart’s experience was primarily with Engie where he led several C‑Suite roles for over 10 years across multiple geographies, the most recent one being Deputy Managing Director of Engie’s Global Business Line Renewables. Before joining Engie, Bart was CEO of Laborelec, an internationally operating electricity research and O&M services centre. Since his early engagement in wind energy over two decades ago, Bart has been actively involved in a wide range of technologies including conventional power generation, natural gas, LNG transport and storage, green gases, solar PV and CSP, hydropower, battery storage, demand side management and microgrids.

Bart holds a Master’s Degree and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of KU Leuven. He is also a visiting professor at the University where he teaches power generation engineering.

Stefan Verlee serves as the Chief Operations Officer for ACWA Power and as the President and Chief Executive Officer of First National Operations and Maintenance Company (NOMAC), a leading O&M provider that is 100 percent owned by ACWA Power. Mr Verlee was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of NOMAC in July 2022.

A professional engineer with over 25 years’ experience in operation and maintenance, Stefan previously served as Executive Vice President of NOMAC, leading the expansion of the international business since 2017 in providing safe, reliable, and cost‑effective power and water to the communities we operate in and fully engaged in the energy transition. Prior to joining NOMAC, Stefan was working with Engie, a leading energy company focused on energy transition, electricity and water generation, distribution, and services. He oversaw the operation and maintenance of large‑scale power and water projects in various continents, most recently as Chief Operating Officer of ENGIE power and Water Middle East.

Stefan holds a Master’s Degree in electro‑mechanical engineering from the University of Leuven (Belgium) and an MBA in European Utility Management from Jacobs University of Bremen (Germany).

Faisal Jadu serves as the Chief People and Culture Officer at ACWA Power.

A seasoned professional with over 18 years of experience in the human resources field, Mr Jadu was responsible for driving and formulating the HR function of several prominent organisations in Saudi Arabia. His areas of expertise entail strategic planning, change management, leadership development, governance and policies, and organisational effectiveness.

Mr Jadu started his professional career by joining Alawwal Bank’s Future Managers Programme and then joined the Human Resources function where he held several executive roles. In 2011, Mr Jadu moved to Saudi British Bank “SABB” (currently Saudi Awwal Bank “SAB”) where he held several leadership positions before assuming the role of Chief Human Resources Officer.

Prior to joining ACWA Power, Mr Jadu served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Skills Centre within the Ministry of Finance (MOF) in Saudi Arabia. He was responsible for establishing the Financial Skills Centre – a national initiative to develop the financial skills of government employees, which included over five hundred government entities and up to 18,000 employees across the Kingdom.

Mr Jadu holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems (MIS) from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), Saudi Arabia. He is also an independent member of the Board of Directors’ Nomination and Remuneration Committee (NRC) of several Saudi entities.

Alvaro Perez joined ACWA Power as the Chief Digital Officer and is leading ACWA Power’s digital transformation, as well as managing the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) functions.

He has over 20 years of experience within technology integration and has been responsible for leading large international IT projects where technology and digitalisation were key for business transformation. Mr Perez had been a member of numerous Boards including International Oracle Utilities Product Development Advisory Board and several American power generation associations, and participated as an entrepreneur on different ICO, blockchain and IoT initiatives.

Prior to joining ACWA Power, Mr Perez held different posts during the last 20 years at the largest top five utilities in America and Europe most prominent being CEO of their services companies, CIO and Head of their Digital Hubs where he mainly specialised in distributed generation, demand response and aggregation, energy efficiency and smart cities development.

Mr Perez is an Economic Science graduate from Complutense University, Spain. He also holds a Degree in Executive Strategies from Harvard Business School.

Ghassan H. Shawli, ACWA Power’s Chief Legal Officer, is a legal veteran with 19 years of experience in senior leadership roles with reputable companies.

Prior to joining ACWA Power, Mr Shawli was the Chief Legal Officer for the Diriyah Gate Development Authority, advising on legal affairs and overseeing the build‑up and performance of the department. He has also held the role of Vice President of Legal Affairs for three years at The Saudi Arabian Airlines Cooperation as well as other senior positions at Saudi Aramco, cultivating deep sector expertise in the Kingdom.

Mr Shawli brings a wealth of experience as lead counsel on mega projects; mergers and acquisitions; corporate governance; and restructuring within various industries, with market cap sizes exceeding USD 20 billion dollars.

Mr Shawli is a certified New York State Bar attorney and holds a Jurisprudence Doctorate Degree from the Northwestern School of Law.

Rehan Baig is the Chief Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Officer at ACWA Power.

He has more than 25 years of experience working across the globe in C‑level, senior management, and board director positions, leading businesses in strategic and emerging growth markets in multiple sectors including renewable energy, FMCG, technology, retail, and communications. Prior to joining ACWA Power, Rehan spent several years in top level leadership positions of British American Tobacco, a FTSE 100 company with a market‑leading position in more than 50 countries and operations in around 180. During his time at BAT, he was integral in strategy development, driving growth and leading teams in commercial MD roles across various geographies. Rehan was a member of the BAT Asia Pacific leadership team and headed Strategy and MandA. Rehan joined ACWA Power in January 2022 as a Senior Advisor to the Chairman before leading Corporate Affairs, Strategy, and Sustainability in an acting capacity. He also serves as an independent director on the board of Philip Morris Pakistan Ltd (listed on KSE) and is Chair of their Audit Committee. He is an advisor to several companies in the communication, technology and VC verticals.

Rehan holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Political Science from McGill University, Canada. He has received Executive leadership and management level certification from IMD Switzerland in strategy, marketing, and leadership. He has a postgraduate in digital marketing from the IDM, UK. He is also a certified PICG independent director.

Simon Watson is the Chief Health, Safety, Security and Environment Officer at ACWA Power. His dedication to enhancing organisational outcomes has led to substantial improvements in safety and sustainability, reflecting his impact across the various high‑risk sectors he’s navigated globally.

Beginning his corporate journey as a non‑commissioned officer in the British Army, Simon honed leadership and operational skills that would become the foundation of his later successes in the corporate world. His military discipline seamlessly transitioned into corporate strategy, where he has since shaped and led HSSES initiatives with rigour and vision. At Wood, in the EMEA region, he held the pivotal role of Vice President of HSSES, managing a substantial team and PandL.

Simon’s career has been marked by strategic roles. At Siemens Mobility and Thames Water his efforts have significantly reduced incidents and integrated sustainable practices into core business functions, thereby enhancing operational efficiency and compliance.

Simon holds an MBA along with a Degree in Health and Safety. Simon’s commitment to continuous improvement is evident in his ongoing pursuit of professional development. This drive for knowledge complements his extensive practical experience, equipping him with a unique blend of expertise in both theory and application.