Lamya Echahed

Emirati environmental scientist leading Middle East's renewable energy transition through solar innovation

Lamya Echahed is a UAE-based renewable energy pioneer whose work in concentrated solar power (CSP) has transformed energy systems across the Arab world. As Chief Technology Officer of Masdar Institute, she developed the world's first molten salt solar tower system that stores energy for 24 hours, enabling solar power generation at night. This breakthrough technology powers Abu Dhabi's Noor Energy 1 plant, the largest CSP facility in the world (1,000 MW capacity).

Her Solar Innovation Lab has trained over 1,200 engineers from 25 Arab countries since 2020, creating a regional network of solar technicians. Echahed's CSP technology reduced the UAE's carbon emissions by 3.2 million tons annually while cutting electricity costs by 40%. Her 2021 paper in Nature Energy outlined a roadmap to achieve 70% renewable energy in Arab states by 2030.

In 2023 she launched Desert Sun Initiative, a solar-powered water desalination project providing clean water to 500,000 people in North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The project's floating solar arrays are now being replicated in Oman and Saudi Arabia. Echahed's TED Talk How the Sun Can Power the Entire Middle East (2022) has been viewed 8.5 million times. She was awarded the UNESCO Gender Equality in Science Prize in 2023 for her work advancing women in STEM across the Arab world.