Dr. Samir J. Serhan

Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Samir J. Serhan is the Chief Executive Officer of Acwa and is responsible for the company’s global strategy and operations spanning 15 markets currently. Before his appointment as CEO, Dr. Serhan was Acwa’s President of Saudi Arabia and Middle East, where he was responsible for seven key markets, including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Jordan, and Iraq.

Previously, Dr. Serhan was Chief Operating Officer of the US-based company Air Products where he had global responsibility for the company’s operational business and project execution with P&L accountability for the Americas, Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and India. He also led functions including technology, global engineering, manufacturing, and equipment at Air Products.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Serhan was President, Hydrogen for Praxair. For 14 years prior, he worked for the Linde Group in leadership positions in the US and Germany, culminating in his role as Managing Director of Linde Engineering. He brings more than three decades of global leadership experience across large-scale industrial and infrastructure organizations, with a strong track record in driving operational transformation, strengthening institutional capability, and delivering disciplined and profitable growth in complex, capital-intensive environments.

Additionally, he served as an adjunct professor at Temple University and The Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Serhan holds a Ph.D. in engineering mechanics from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). Active in research, he has presented and published more than 40 papers at conferences and in scientific journals around the world.

Abdulhameed Al Muhaidib

Chief Financial Officer

Abdulhameed Al Muhaidib is Chief Financial Officer of Acwa, overseeing the company’s financial strategy and performance. He brings more than 16 years of experience across business and finance roles within the group, including corporate finance and project governance.​

During his early years with Acwa, he worked on corporate finance activities and served on the boards and committees of several projects, including NOMAC (now Acwa Operations). He later focused on managing projects under execution in the UAE, such as Noor Energy 1, the world’s largest CSP project.​

Before joining Acwa, Abdulhameed worked in Global Investment Banking and Advisory at HSBC Middle East / Saudi Arabia, gaining exposure to complex financings and capital markets. He has also served as a board, audit committee, and risk committee member for institutions including HSBC Saudi Arabia, SABB, and various Acwa subsidiaries.​

He holds a BBA in Finance from the University of Miami and an MBA from Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management, and completed the KSA Leadership 2030 Program sponsored by the MISK Foundation.

Faisal Jadu

Chief People and Culture Officer

Faisal Jadu serves as Chief People and Culture Officer at Acwa, leading the company’s human resources strategy and people agenda. With over 20 years of experience in HR, he has helped shape workforce capabilities at several major Saudi institutions.​

His expertise spans strategic planning, change management, leadership development, governance, and organizational effectiveness. He has been responsible for designing and driving HR functions that support business growth and transformation.​

Faisal began his career at Alawwal Bank through its Future Managers Program before moving into HR, where he held a series of executive roles. In 2011, he joined Saudi British Bank (SABB), ultimately serving as Chief Human Resources Officer.​

Prior to joining Acwa, he was CEO of the Financial Skills Centre at the Ministry of Finance, a national initiative to build the financial skills of government employees across more than five hundred entities, and he also serves as an independent NRC member for several Saudi boards.

Tahir Mahmood

Chief Risk Officer

Tahir Mahmood serves as Chief Risk Officer of Acwa, directing enterprise-wide risk management and governance frameworks. More than 20 years of experience in compliance and assurance underpin his approach to resilience.

His career spans leadership roles at National Grid Plc, Centrica Plc, and UK Power Networks, where he served as Director of Finance Assurance, Chief Risk and Compliance Officer, and Chief Audit Executive. Most recently, Tahir held the same dual role at Saudi Electric Company, advancing risk maturity and compliance programs.

Expertise in enterprise risk frameworks, audit, and governance has defined his contributions across organizations. He has led post-acquisition reviews and group-wide governance processes while engaging regularly with boards and stakeholders.

Tahir is a qualified accountant with a BSc (Hons) from Aston University, a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), and a PRINCE2 Practitioner. His leadership strengthens Acwa’s risk management capabilities.

Furqan Kamlani

Chief Audit Officer

Furqan Kamlani serves as Chief Audit Officer of Acwa, reporting to the Audit Committee of the Board and the CEO. His remit covers independent assurance over governance, risk, and controls.

With more than 26 years in finance and audit, Furqan has built expertise in the aviation and energy sectors. Previous responsibilities at Acwa as Vice President – Internal Audit provided detailed insight into operations and compliance.

Earlier, Furqan held senior roles at Emirates Group, where he led finance and administration in Pakistan before becoming Head of Audit for Emirates Operations. At Saudia Technic, he established the audit and risk function as Chief Audit & Risk Officer, emphasizing Saudi talent development.

Furqan is a Chartered Accountant from Pakistan and a Certified Internal Auditor accredited by The Institute of Internal Auditors in the US. His leadership continues to strengthen Acwa’s governance framework.

Saleh Al Khabti

President, China

Saleh Al Khabti serves as President of Acwa China, leading strategy, and partnerships across the Chinese market. His work focuses on positioning Acwa as a trusted partner in the region.

Previously, Saleh was Deputy Minister of Investment Transactions at Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment, where he designed incentive frameworks and negotiated deals worth billions of US dollars. Earlier roles at Aramco Asia’s China office included Vice President of Business Origination and Vice President of Joint Venture Development, where he structured major downstream transactions.

Saleh holds an MBA with a specialization in marketing from Phoenix, United States, and a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from Xiamen University in China. Fluent in Arabic, English, and Mandarin, he continues to strengthen Acwa’s presence in China.

Hashim Ghabashi

President, Africa

Hashim Ghabashi serves as President, MEASEA of Acwa, overseeing operations across the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. More than 21 years of experience support his leadership.

His technical background spans project management, petrochemicals, energy, and water desalination. Working with international consulting firms has helped him lead initiatives in cost leadership, reliability, health and safety, and culture enhancement.

Experience in multicultural environments and collaboration with contractors from Europe, the Far East, and China have strengthened his ability to align teams toward common goals.

Since joining Acwa in 2015, Hashim has served as EMO of Bowarege and RABEC, then as EMD for the Hassyan Clean Coal Project, and currently as EMD of Noor Energy 1, the world’s largest CSP project under construction. His leadership continues to drive operational excellence.

Abid Malik

President, Central Asia

Abid Malik serves as President, Central Asia of Acwa, leading activities across key markets in the region. A background in mechanical engineering underpins more than 25 years in the power sector.

Early career roles at AES and Engro Power (formerly Exxon) covered business development, design, construction, and operations of power assets. Joining Acwa in 2009, Abid has since taken on senior leadership positions spanning project development and asset management.

Direct involvement in major power transactions worldwide has given him deep insight into both contracted projects and merchant market investments. Knowledge of development, design, operations, and commercial structures allows him to navigate the sector’s two core business models effectively.

Abid also serves on the boards of several power and utility companies owned and operated by Acwa. His leadership continues to advance the company’s growth in Central Asia.

Matthew York

President, Acwa Operations

Matthew York is President of Acwa Operations, the global operations and maintenance business of Acwa, responsible for the operational performance, reliability, and safety of one of the world’s largest portfolios of power generation, water desalination, and renewable energy assets.

In this role, he leads Acwa’s global operating organization, overseeing plant performance, technical governance, asset optimization, and operational delivery across a multi-gigawatt fleet spanning the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, and other international markets. His mandate includes strengthening operational excellence, building advanced technical capability, and supporting the continued expansion of Acwa’s global infrastructure platform.

Matthew has more than two decades of experience in the power and energy sector, with deep expertise in combined cycle power generation, large-scale desalination, and complex thermal and renewable energy assets. Prior to his current role, he held senior operational leadership positions within Acwa and NOMAC, where he was responsible for improving plant performance, resolving complex technical challenges, and strengthening operational governance across multiple international assets.

Matthew is known for his hands-on approach to asset performance and his ability to bridge engineering, operations, and strategic leadership. His work has focused on driving reliability, optimizing plant efficiency, and building high-performing technical organizations capable of operating complex infrastructure at scale.

Matthew holds an MBA from Warwick Business School and is a Chartered Engineer (CEng).

Yasir Mahmoud

Executive Vice President, Water Global Product Line

Yasir Mahmoud is the Executive Vice President, Water Global Product Line at Acwa. A certified Manager of Quality and Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE) and Project Management Professional (PMP), Yasir has over 33 years of diversified experience spanning water, conventional power, renewable energy, and large-scale infrastructure development. His career covers the full project lifecycle - from inception, feasibility, and business development through bidding, design, procurement, construction, management, and operations.

Yasir joined Acwa in 2006 after 14 years in the construction of water and power projects. Since then, he has led, managed, supervised, and supported a portfolio valued at approximately USD 60 billion, guiding world-class mega-developments to financial close. He also serves and represents Acwa as a board member for many of the Company’s project companies.

In his previous capacity as Chief Development Officer, he held responsibility for investment across Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iraq, and Bangladesh.

Yasir’s command of the full development cycle - from early-stage feasibility through to operational handover - gives the Water Global Product Line a leader with rare end-to-end visibility across the value chain.

Driss Berraho

Executive Vice President, Global Green Hydrogen Product Line

Driss Berraho is the Executive Vice President, Green Hydrogen Global Product Line at Acwa, with business responsibility for green hydrogen projects across our core geographies.

A French-Moroccan national with nearly 15 years of experience in renewable energy and green hydrogen development, Driss has deep technical expertise across concentrated solar power, solar PV, wind, storage, and electrolysis projects’ development. His track record spans over  multi-billion-dollar transactions structured through complex project finance arrangements with a variety of lenders, including development financing institutions.

Before assuming his current role, he served as Vice President of Business Development for Green Hydrogen at Acwa. As Project Development Director for the NEOM Green Hydrogen project, he led the origination to closing cycle for a USD 8.5 billion green ammonia facility or Acwa, producing 1.2 million tons per annum, integrating over 4 GW of renewables and a 2 GW electrolysis plant. His earlier career at Acwa was focused on deploying over 7 GW of renewable energy capacity across the Middle East and Africa. Prior to Acwa, he worked at Nur Energie developing early renewable power export projects from North Africa to Europe and held analyst positions in the Strategy Department of former French nuclear company AREVA and the Renewable Energy Division of the International Energy Agency in Paris. 

Driss holds an Engineering (Master’s) degree from École Polytechnique, France, and a Civilingenjör in Sustainable Energy Engineering from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. He speaks Arabic, English, French, and Spanish.

Alfons Juan

Executive Vice President, Project Delivery

Alfons Juan is the Executive Vice President, Project Delivery at Acwa. With over 20 years of experience in the power and water industry, Alfons has delivered projects across most technologies including conventional generation (CCGTs), solar PV, CSP, wind, waste-to-energy, biomass, hydro and desalination throughout multiple markets, including the Middle East, Morocco, South Africa, Australia, Chile, Mexico, Brazil, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Before his current appointment, he served as Vice President, Strategic Supply & Contracting at Acwa, which he joined in June 2021, with global responsibility on strategy of Capex allocation, including selection of EPCs and OEMs, for all projects at Acwa. 

Prior to Acwa, Alfons joined Acciona in 2011, where over the following decade, he reached Executive Vice President of Development and Operations in the industrial and power business with responsibility from project origination to commercial operation. Notable projects included the 800 MW MBR Al Maktoum Solar Park III in Dubai and the 160 MW Noor I CSP plant in Morocco, the latter delivered for Acwa. 

He earlier spent seven years as Project Director for CCGTs in the Engineering and Construction division of Naturgy, one of the largest European utilities.

He holds an MSc in Civil Engineering from Universidad Politécnica de Valencia and an Executive MBA from IESE Business School. He speaks Spanish, English, and French.