Innovating for a Sustainable Energy Future Takes Ambitions
Speaker(s)
Dr. Rusha Al-Rawaf,
Chief Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Officer
ACWA Power
Rusha Al-Rawaf is ACWA Power’s Chief Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Officer, overseeing the Sustainability and CSR, Institutional Relations, and Corporate Communications departments.
In her role, she works closely with the management team and various functions to maximise the business’ short, medium, and long-term profitability.
As a seasoned marketing and communications executive, she is multilingual and adept in diverse cultural environments. Rusha also has a proven track record in elevating corporate value through strategic roles and global operations and combines a strong technical background with effective leadership skills, driving strategic alignment and cohesive team dynamics. Her expertise spans impactful marketing initiatives and corporate communication strategies, tailored to the needs of the energy sector.
She has held senior positions at a number of renowned institutions in the Kingdom and abroad, including stc and Aramco. In previous roles, Rusha has been responsible for leading teams and crafting messaging strategies, as well as managing brand positioning and executing integrated marketing campaigns.
Rusha holds an executive MBA from London Business School and a PhD from University of California, Santa Barbara, blending academic knowledge with practical, innovative solutions in communication and sustainability.
Thomas Altmann is the Executive Vice President (EVP) for Innovation and New Technology at ACWA Power.
He is a leading expert in Energy and Desalination, having worked in technical and managerial roles in this field for over 30 years. As a global specialist, Thomas held EVP and MD positions at ILF Consulting in Germany with responsibility for Energy & Desalination across international markets. He also served as VP at Bechtel in the Power Generation business unit with global responsibility for Desalination out of their UK and US offices.
Thomas has also served as elected Director on the board of the International Desalination Association (IDA) and the European Desalination Society (EDS). He is also a member of the IDA Global R+D Committee and MIT Technology Review Global Panel. Thomas holds a degree in chemical engineering and was granted patents in the field of desalination and brine mining.
Dr Tariq Nada is ACWA Power’s Vice President for Desalination based in the company’s office in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
With an impressive career spanning over 22 years, Dr Nada is responsible for overseeing the technical aspects of ACWA Power's extensive water portfolio. He also sits on the boards of multiple companies linked to ACWA Power desalination projects.
Dr Nada has accumulated a wealth of industry experience since his career began in 2001, when he got his start working in the operations and maintenance of power and desalination plants in Saudi Arabia.
He joined ACWA Power in 2015 as an executive manager for the portfolio management team, and rose through the ranks thanks to his deep knowledge of desalination from both the technical and commercial standpoints – including operations and maintenance, sustainable strategies and profitability as well as the full cycle development of bid proposals for water plant projects.
Dr Nada also holds a PhD in Desalination Technology from Glasgow in Scotland University.
Abdurahman holds a higher Diploma in International Environmental Law from United Nation Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from King Saud University (KSU), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He is also a Certified Circular Economy Life Cycle Assessment professional from Circular Economy Lab (CircEL), University College London; and a certified, Responsible Investment professional, from UN PRI.
He has worked with major global players in Oil & Gas (Shell), Aerospace (BAE Systems), and Mining industry (Saudi Arabian Mining Company Ma'aden). He extended his advisory services to some governmental agencies and giga projects around national policies development and programs strategy in collaboration with the World Bank. Currently, Abdurahman is leading the Sustainability in ACWA Power globally.
His work is centered around developing sustainability frameworks and corporate strategies to promote aspects of Stakeholder Capitalism, Sustainable business-models, and Socioeconomic impact.