Today marks the International Day for South–South Cooperation—a perfect moment to spotlight a company that embodies the power of cross-border collaboration in the Global South. In this first edition of IFC Talks—our new series of conversations with IFC clients who share their industry expertise and insights on how the private sector can tackle development challenges with the support of development finance institutions (DFIs) like IFC—we speak with Marco Arcelli, CEO of one of our strategic clients, ACWA Power.
A longstanding partner of IFC for over a decade and a half, ACWA Power is the world’s largest private water desalination company, a leader in the global energy transition, and a first mover in green hydrogen —and one of the largest sectoral investors in Africa and Central Asia. Our partnership has spanned multiple landmark projects, from IFC’s equity investment in ACWA in 2012, followed by multiple project financings across emerging markets to our most recent investment supporting Uzbekistan’s renewable energy transition through an Islamic Equity Bridge Loan (EBL), with exciting plans ahead to expand access to clean energy and water across diverse markets across the globe.
In this interview, Arcelli discusses how ACWA Power is meeting the urgent demand for clean energy and water in fast-growing emerging markets, why South–South investments are a powerful driver of development, and how the company is helping to deliver on Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. He also shares his perspective on the critical role DFIs like IFC play in bridging the gap between governments and the private sector, and in making essential services more affordable and sustainable.
Can you describe ACWA Power in a nutshell?
ACWA Power is one of the largest energy transition companies in the world. We have close to 93 gigawatts of capacity—equivalent to the total peak demand of a country like Germany.
We are also the largest desalination company, with more than 9 million cubic meters per day of capacity—enough to meet 25 -30% of the water demand in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, and the UAE.
In green hydrogen, we are a first mover and arguably the largest player, with the largest global project under construction today—the NEOM Green Hydrogen Project in Saudi Arabia, developed in partnership with Air Products. We also have a second project in Uzbekistan.
And we are a true poster child of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 because we bring together the country’s sovereign wealth fund (PIF) as a shareholder and private sector investors. As a publicly listed company, we highlight how Saudi Arabia is developing national champions to boost the private sector’s role in the economy.
What does it take to address energy and water challenges today?
ACWA Power is unique in bringing solutions to such challenges as we operate across emerging markets.
In addition to Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, we also serve communities in 15 countries, including Africa, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia—and these are regions and economies that are growing fast and have a pressing need for energy and clean water. Meeting these demands requires significant action, passion, and energy to develop solutions at scale.
Speed is one of the biggest challenges. Decisions must be made quickly to effectively support and uplift local economies and communities. We see this happen most in the countries where leaders have clear pragmatic visions and maintain strong dialogue with investors—such as in Saudi Arabia with Vision 2030 and in Uzbekistan, which are also the two largest markets in our portfolio.
Another key factor is people. Developing and elevating the skills of local talent is essential as they will ultimately drive and accelerate these projects. To support this, we have established the Energy & Water Academy (EWA) in Saudi Arabia and the Shirin Energy College in Uzbekistan and we're exploring opportunities to roll these out to other countries too.
How do South-South investments from ACWA Power help with development?
The private sector plays a pivotal role in driving growth in emerging markets.
First, we bring significant investments in the energy and water sector, which contribute to significant foreign direct investments and help boost the local economy.
Secondly, by providing affordable and accessible water and power, we make essential utilities more available, supporting economic development and improving the quality of life.
Third, we focus on developing people. We currently operate two academies—the Energy and Water Academy in Saudi Arabia, which has already trained 15,000 people, and the Shirin College in Uzbekistan, which trains 120 wind technicians every year—and are working on establishing more. The young people we train are expected to become the key players of tomorrow in fields such as energy, health and safety, robotics, and operation and maintenance. We are also currently employing more than 4000 people.
How can Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) like IFC help?
ACWA Power is the largest investor in Central Asia and Africa in the electricity and salination sectors. How? Because we’re able to go into these markets and bring the best solutions from around the world—thanks to DFIs like IFC.
To become a key player in the energy sector of tomorrow and successfully develop projects in emerging markets, you need to work with local governments. However, the private sector and governments often speak different languages. Multilateral banks and DFIs like IFC play a critical role in bridging this gap, enabling communication, and helping both sides find solutions quickly. The faster this happens, the better it is for the project.
The second thing is that in emerging markets it's very important to keep power and water costs low. Project financing forces us to bring together different partners from around the world on the equity side, which help lower costs and scale up the volume of activity, while the involvement of DFIs like IFC provides long-term security and reduces risk.
Finally, DFI’s enable access to concessional financing from philanthropists or governments who aim to stabilize the Global South. The benefits of this concessional financing are not retained by the private sector but are passed on to local populations through lower-cost power and water.
Where do you see IFC’s greatest value add?
I’d like to share a specific example. We’re currently working with IFC on a desalination project in Africa that requires a very low tariff due to the country’s low income per capita. IFC is helping by bringing together the best solution—concessional financing—to lower the tariff for the local community. Just as importantly, IFC enables us to move quickly, which is why we’re now exploring the possibility of extending this collaboration beyond one country to a regional platform.
Private investors in the Global South naturally weigh risk and reward, but many of these countries face slow development due to fragmented and complex decision-making processes, which increases the perceived level of risk.
So, how do you make water more affordable? You reduce the risk, which allows us to accept lower returns. This is where IFC and other multilaterals play a critical role. They provide long tenures, multilateral guarantees on loans, and facilitate collaboration between governments, the private sector, and equity partners. By bringing these stakeholders together, we can collectively make energy and water more affordable and accessible.
What is your vision for ACWA Power?
Our ambition is to transform Saudi Arabia from the world’s largest exporter of oil to the largest exporter of low carbon and desalination technology. Thanks to IFC and other multilaterals, we are expanding into Africa, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia—the regions that need these solutions the most.
How do you see ACWA Power’s role in terms of job creation?
ACWA Power is a private company with a very long-term vision, which means we need the best people to succeed.
In every country we operate, we look at developing people and creating jobs—not just for the construction period but also for the operation and, later, for the localization of manufacturing as much as possible.
So thanks to the entry of ACWA Power in many countries, we're able to create jobs and boost the local economy through industrial production.
What’s your approach as a leader at the helm of ACWA power?
When I first joined ACWA Power, I made it a priority to visit all our sites, because I wanted to learn from those closest to both the action and the problems. I believe the best solutions often come from the field.
I may be the CEO but I see myself more as the CFO—the Chief Facilitating Officer. My role is to provide our teams with the tools and support they need to work better, faster, and more efficiently. I act as a coach, empowering the team to score the goals while staying in the background to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Interview by Emmanouela (Emmy) Markoglou, IFC Communications Lead for the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan
September 12, 2025