Mohamed Hilal Al Zaabi is the regulatory affairs executive director at the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy (DoE), the government body mandated to enable the UAE capital’s energy transition towards a more sustainable future. He has also served as chairman of the Arab Electricity Regulators Forum since 2020.

Al Zaabi joined DoE in 2019 to oversee and lead the development of regulatory policies including economic, financial, technical, and safety regulations for several energy sectors including district cooling, power generation, transmission and distribution, potable water, and recycled water. He sets the regulatory framework for transport electrification in the emirate in addition to ensuring the highest standards for protecting the energy consumers.

Al Zaabi has over seventeen years of experience incorporating senior executive roles within government executive and regulatory offices and in the private sector. His broad expertise spans business development, business risk analysis, investigations, competitive intelligence, complex problem solving, and stakeholder engagement.

Prior to joining DoE, Al Zaabi held several leading roles in developing key Abu Dhabi policies for reforming the energy sector and counsels on issues related to energy policies and sustainable development. In addition, he spearheaded the development of Shams Power Company from the project phase to commercial operation as part of Masdar, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company. Mohamed Al Zaabi holds a master’s degree in strategic and security studies from the National Defence University, Abu Dhabi, and a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Gonzaga University in the United States.