Acwa Power Appoints New CEO
Energy and water company Acwa has named Dr. Samir J. Serhan as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective today. Dr. Serhan was previously President of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East for the company and formerly served as COO of US-based Air Products. He replaces Marco Arcelli, who remains an advisor.
The leadership change comes as ACWA Power targets a tripling of its assets under management to over $250 billion by 2030. The company, majority-owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), is escalating its annual capital deployment in new projects to between $2 billion and $2.5 billion to fuel this growth. A key part of this expansion is a strategic pivot to aggressive global growth, with a significant focus on China and Southeast Asia. ACWA Power aims to have $30 billion to $75 billion in assets in China by 2030, which it considers its second most important market after Saudi Arabia. This global push is built on a foundation of massive domestic projects. In July 2025, an ACWA-led consortium signed deals worth $8.3 billion to develop seven new solar and wind projects in Saudi Arabia, totaling 15,000 megawatts of capacity. Dr. Serhan's background as COO of industrial gas giant Air Products aligns with ACWA's major investments in green hydrogen. The company is a key partner in the $8.4 billion NEOM Green Hydrogen Project, which aims to produce 600 tonnes of carbon-free hydrogen per day by 2026. The new CEO takes over from Marco Arcelli, who held the position since March 2023. During Arcelli's tenure, the company initiated its strategy to significantly scale up its global portfolio and secured major power purchase agreements. The company's expansion is backed by strong financial performance. For the first half of 2025, ACWA Power reported a 62% increase in adjusted net profit, reaching $312 million, driven by its growing portfolio of operational assets.
