H.E. Eng. Essa Bin Hilal Al-Kuwari

Engineer Essa bin Hilal Al-Kuwari is the Minister of State in Qatar. He serves as a member and the Secretariat General of the Permanent Water Resources Committee of Qatar and has been a member of the Permanent National Emergency Committee in Qatar since 2008.

In 2010, Eng. Al-Kuwari was appointed as a board member of the Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority (GCCIA) and has represented Qatar on the Arab Governors Water Council since 2014.

Holding numerous leadership positions, he is a member of the Advisory Council of the Faculty of Engineering and the College of Business and Economics at Qatar University. He has also served as Chairman of the Steering Committee of Texas A&M University Qatar’s Smart Grid Center since 2014. In January 2013, Eng. Al-Kuwari was elected Chairman of the Arab Union of Electricity and was re-elected for a second term in 2016. He continues to serve as a member of the Steering Committee of Qatar Rail.

Before serving as President of Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (KAHRAMAA), Eng. Al-Kuwari held the position of Acting Managing Director of KAHRAMAA from 2009 to 2011, where he played a vital role in the progress and expansion of its business and activities. From 2010 to 2011, he was the Chairman of the GCCIA and a Board Member of GCC CIGRE from 2008 to 2010. He also served as a Board Member of Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company from 2005 to 2010, as well as a member of the Qatar Petroleum Board of Directors from 2012 to 2014.

Born in Qatar in 1971, Eng. Al-Kuwari began his career in 1994 as a construction engineer at the former Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW). In 1999, he was appointed Head of Protection at MEW and later for KAHRAMAA after its establishment in 2000. He led the electricity transmission team at KAHRAMAA as Manager of the Electricity Transmission Department until he was appointed Director of Electricity Network Affairs in 2003. In this role, he successfully oversaw the upgrade and expansion of Qatar’s electricity networks until 2009.

Eng. Al-Kuwari was awarded a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from Qatar University in 1994 and holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Hull, United Kingdom.