From Monopoly to Market: Lessons in Transforming Critical Infrastructure Sectors

The transition from public sector to publicly owned requires far more than a change of structure — it demands a change of mindset from the company, its employees, and all stakeholders. Having worked with organisations such as EWEC, ADWEA and TAQA through major transition programmes, I’ve seen first-hand that success depends not simply on systems or governance reforms, but on people’s willingness to think and behave differently.

Dubai. In the summer of 2016. Modern desalination plant on the shores of the Arabian Gulf

The Mindset Shift

When a monopoly moves towards a market-based environment, alignment of goals

becomes one of the hardest challenges. The motivations for change often differ substantially

between key stakeholders — government, investors, management, regulators, and

employees — and can sometimes conflict outright. Achieving a sustainable balance between

public purpose and commercial discipline is rarely straightforward. It takes consistent

engagement, absolute clarity of intent, and a readiness to confront institutional habits that

may have gone unchallenged for decades.

Rebuilding the Framework

Legal, regulatory, and operational frameworks must all evolve — and with them, the skills

of those who operate within them. Many public-sector entities have never been required to

work to commercial standards of accountability, transparency, or efficiency. Establishing

standalone finance, risk, and IT functions is rarely a technical exercise alone; it is a cultural

reset. The separation of systems and data between old and new entities often exposes deep

weaknesses in data quality and record-keeping. These issues can become a disproportionate

drain on project resources and frequently force leadership teams to make policy-level decisions simply to stay on track. Without firm but informed leadership, such challenges can

impede momentum and erode confidence.

Managing People Through Uncertainty

The fear of, and resistance to, change among employees is another major barrier to success.

Identifying which staff are critical to retain is not always obvious — it is important to

ensure that personal self-interest doesn’t compromise the wider project goals. People

whose institutional memory is valuable may simultaneously be those most resistant to the

new direction. Retaining capability while reshaping culture requires judgement, empathy,

and early, open communication about what the new world will look like and how

individuals fit within it.

Balancing Financial Drivers and Governance

There is an inevitable tension between the financial benefits that tend to drive

transformation — the release of capital, or the pursuit of operational efficiencies — and the

need to ensure robust governance, risk management and control. The temptation is to

prioritise speed and short-term gain, but the real measure of success lies in creating an

organisation that can stand independently under scrutiny and perform sustainably. The

best programmes recognise this from the outset and design financial, operational and

regulatory frameworks together, not sequentially.

Unlocking Long-Term Benefits

When managed well, the rewards are substantial. Beyond the immediate financial

outcomes, these transitions can enable innovation, open markets, and attract new

investment. They allow organisations to redesign products and services around efficiency,

customer satisfaction and transparency. At a national level, they can stimulate competition,

create new employment sectors, and bring foreign investment into previously closed

systems — all while retaining appropriate government oversight of critical infrastructure.

Handled well, a transformation of this kind enhances public value and it

modernises the way that value is created.

The Role of Leadership

None of this happens by accident. Continuous and constructive engagement with the

incoming C-suite and with critical government stakeholders is essential to remove obstacles

and preserve alignment. Leadership in these settings is as much about diplomacy and

communication as it is about programme delivery. The most effective transformation

leaders build coalitions of trust across institutional boundaries — ensuring that both sides

of the public–private divide feel heard and see the long-term benefit of collaboration.

The MDIS Perspective

At MDIS, this is exactly where our Associates add value. We embed senior leaders who have

delivered these transitions before — individuals who combine strategic insight, financial

discipline, and board-level credibility with the ability to operate pragmatically inside

complex governance structures. We understand how to balance public policy objectives

with commercial imperatives, and how to move from ambition to execution without losing either control or confidence.

Transforming a public monopoly into a market-ready enterprise is never easy. But with

experienced leadership, aligned stakeholders, and clear governance, it can unlock value well

beyond balance sheets — delivering resilience, innovation, and opportunity for the wider

economy.

About the Author

Alex Duval is a seasoned finance and governance executive, formerly a PwC partner and

senior leader across energy, utilities and infrastructure in the UK and the Middle East. A

Chartered Accountant and ICAEW Fellow, his prior roles include Group Financial Controller at TAQA, Special Advisor to the CEO of ADWEA, and Interim CFO of EWEC. He leads strategy for governance, risk, compliance, and finance transformation at MDIS, applying deep sector experience to public‑private reform.

Footnotes

EWEC (Emirates Water and Electricity Company) – The UAE’s central water and power

procurement company responsible for planning, purchasing and optimising electricity and

water production across Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates. It plays a pivotal role in

energy transition through large-scale renewable projects such as Noor Abu Dhabi and Al

Dhafra Solar PV, and the water desalination transition to energy-efficient reverse osmosis

production.

ADWEA (Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority) – The former government authority overseeing the Emirate’s water and power sector until its restructuring in 2018.

ADWEA managed regulation, generation, and distribution under a vertically integrated

model, later transitioning its assets and responsibilities to corporatised entities, including

EWEC and TAQA.

TAQA (Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC) – A diversified energy and utilities

group listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange. TAQA owns and operates power

generation, water desalination, oil, gas and transmission assets across multiple geographies

and has been at the centre of Abu Dhabi’s shift from state-managed to commercially driven

energy operations.