Salah Foudah: Driving Renewable Energy Leadership and Infrastructure Excellence

As the global energy sector transitions toward sustainability and innovation, leadership within renewable energy and power infrastructure has become increasingly vital. Among the executives contributing to this transformation is Salah Foudah, a seasoned energy and infrastructure professional whose career spans large-scale power systems, transmission infrastructure, and renewable energy development across Saudi Arabia.

Currently serving as Chief Executive Officer of Khulis One Renewable Energy Company, Foudah brings more than two decades of experience in engineering, project management, and executive leadership. His professional journey reflects a progression from technical engineering roles to strategic leadership positions responsible for guiding complex energy projects and organizational growth.

Leading Renewable Energy Development

As CEO of both renewable energy companies, Foudah plays a pivotal role in advancing sustainable energy initiatives within the Kingdom. His leadership focuses on aligning renewable energy development with evolving market needs, operational efficiency, and long-term energy sustainability.

With a background in engineering and project execution, he brings a practical approach to leadership—balancing strategic direction with a deep understanding of technical operations. His ability to integrate project management discipline, organizational leadership, and financial oversight supports the successful delivery of large-scale infrastructure and renewable energy initiatives.

Strategic Leadership at ACWA Power

Alongside his executive responsibilities, Foudah also serves as an Executive Manager at ACWA Power, one of the region’s leading developers, investors, and operators in power generation and water desalination.

In this role, he contributes to projects and operational strategies that support large-scale energy infrastructure development, reinforcing Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to expand renewable energy capacity and modernize its power sector.

Extensive Experience in Power Infrastructure

Before transitioning fully into executive leadership roles, Foudah built a distinguished career managing complex power transmission and substation projects.

At GE Renewable Energy, he served as Senior Project Manager for more than eight years, overseeing major high-voltage substation projects including:

• The Jeddah North 380 kV Static Var Compensator (SVC) project
• The Madayiah 380 kV Substation project
• Rabigh 3, 380 kV Substation
• Yanbu 4, 380 kV Substation

These projects represented critical infrastructure developments designed to enhance grid stability and support Saudi Arabia’s expanding electricity demand.

Earlier, he also served as Substation Projects Director at AlSharif Group Holding, contributing to strategic oversight and project execution within large-scale electrical infrastructure programs.

Engineering Foundations in the Saudi Power Sector

Foudah’s professional foundation was built through nearly eleven years of service with the Saudi Electricity Company, where he held multiple engineering and leadership roles.

His work included:

• Instrumentation and control maintenance within major power plants in Makkah and Jeddah
• Maintenance and operations of Remote Terminal Units (RTU) in control centers
• Technical planning and support within the SCADA and Communications Division
• Engineering responsibilities related to substation automation systems and telecommunications infrastructure

During this period, he also served as a Group Leader supervising a team of engineers responsible for reviewing contractor submittals for telecommunications and automation systems across multiple projects. These early roles provided him with deep technical knowledge of power systems, operational continuity, and infrastructure management.

Multidisciplinary Technical Experience

Alongside his primary engineering career, Foudah also worked with AEP in a part-time capacity, where he held several roles including:

• Electrical Engineer
• Sales Engineer
• IT Engineer
• Project Supervisor for civil and electrical projects

He also briefly served as Control Room Engineer for Bin Laden Group operations in Makkah, supervising the control room operations for the cooling systems serving the Grand Mosque complex.

These diverse experiences strengthened his multidisciplinary capabilities across engineering, operations, project supervision, and technology management.

Education and Professional Credentials

Foudah holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Executive Business Administration from King Abdulaziz University, complementing his technical expertise with executive management and strategic leadership training. He also earned a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering from the same institution.

Further strengthening his professional profile, he holds the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, the Leadership Accelerator Program certificate from ACWA Power, and the Board of Directors Certificate from the Institute of Directors (IOD), reflecting his commitment to both technical mastery and corporate governance excellence.

Leadership Skills and Professional Strengths

Throughout his career, Foudah has demonstrated expertise in several key areas, including:

• Organizational and executive leadership
• Power infrastructure and renewable energy projects
• Financial and operational performance management
• Engineering project management and infrastructure delivery
• Strategic planning and business development

His leadership style combines technical discipline with entrepreneurial ambition, enabling him to guide organizations through both operational challenges and long-term growth strategies.

Recognition by The CEO Network

The CEO Network proudly recognizes Salah Foudah as a distinguished executive in the energy and infrastructure sector, whose leadership in renewable energy development, power systems engineering, and project management continues to support the evolution of sustainable energy solutions and infrastructure advancement across the region.