Dubai records the world’s lowest electricity customer minutes lost at just 49 seconds per year

HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), announced that DEWA has set a new world record for the lowest electricity customer minutes lost (CML), at just 0.82 minutes (about 49 seconds) per year. With this significant achievement, DEWA has surpassed its own previous world record of 0.94 minutes in 2024, representing an improvement of around 13%.

“We work in line with the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to provide the best electricity and water infrastructure in the world. We utilise the latest technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, particularly artificial intelligence, which we are fully integrating into DEWA’s strategies and operations. The smart grid is a fundamental pillar of DEWA’s strategy to deliver services according to the highest standards of availability, reliability and efficiency. This supports the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan and the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), which seek to consolidate Dubai’s position among the top three global cities,” said Al Tayer.

Al Tayer explained that the Smart Grid, which DEWA is implementing with total investments of AED 7 billion up to 2035, provides advanced features that enhance the efficiency of energy transmission and distribution, reduce outages, minimise losses, improve electrical load management and enhance the happiness of customers and all stakeholders. One of the key programmes is the Automatic Smart Grid Restoration System, the first of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa. The system enables remote, round-the-clock control, management and monitoring without human intervention, through innovative centralised systems that automatically locate and isolate faults and restore service, accelerating power restoration and increasing reliability.

DEWA reduced CML in Dubai from 6.88 minutes per year in 2012 to just 0.82 minutes in 2025, significantly lower than the average of approximately 15 minutes recorded by leading utility companies in the European Union. This underlines DEWA’s global leadership in adopting innovation to deliver services according to the highest reliability standards.