Strategic Rationale of UAE Expansion

Active Energy Group PLC

28 July 2026

 

This is a Reach (i.e. non-regulatory) announcement and the information contained is not considered to be material or to have a significant impact on management's expectations of the Company's performance.

28 July 2026

Active Energy Group plc

("Active Energy", the "Company" or the "Group")

Ahead of the Annual General Meeting - The Strategic Rationale Behind AEG's Expansion into the United Arab Emirates

Active Energy Group plc ("AEG", the "Company" or the "Group") is pleased to provide shareholders with additional context regarding the strategic rationale underpinning the Company's continued expansion within the United Arab Emirates ("UAE"), ahead of its Annual General Meeting to be held on Thursday, 30 July 2026.

Since announcing its strategy to establish an operational presence within the UAE, the Board has received a number of enquiries from shareholders regarding the Company's long-term objectives and the reasons behind its increasing focus on the region.

The Board believes it is appropriate to provide shareholders with additional insight into the structural trends that continue to strengthen its confidence in the UAE and the broader opportunity it believes is developing across digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence ("AI"), critical utilities and national infrastructure resilience.

The UAE - A Global Centre for AI and Digital Infrastructure

Over recent years, the UAE has  established itself as one of the world's leading destinations for investment into artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, high-performance computing ("HPC") and advanced technologies.

Through long-term government policy, sovereign investment and diversification strategy, the UAE continues to attract significant investment from global technology companies, infrastructure investors, hyperscale cloud providers and AI developers.

Unlike many mature markets where expansion is constrained by ageing electrical networks, planning restrictions or lengthy permitting processes, the UAE continues to invest aggressively in modern infrastructure capable of supporting the next generation of digital industries.

The Board believes these investments represent a long-term structural transformation rather than a short-term technology cycle.

AI Requires More Than Computing Power

Whilst much of the discussion surrounding AI focuses on advanced processors, graphics chips and computing performance, the Board believes the rapid expansion of AI is increasingly becoming an infrastructure challenge.

Two resources are emerging as critical to the future deployment of AI infrastructure:

1.             Reliable electrical power.

2.             Sustainable water supplies.

The significant electricity requirements of AI data centres and high-performance computing facilities are now well understood. Access to secure, scalable and competitively priced power has become one of the principal constraints on the continued expansion of AI infrastructure globally.

Modern AI data centres consume substantial quantities of water to cool increasingly dense computing equipment. As AI adoption accelerates, demand for water alongside electricity is expected to increase significantly, creating new challenges for infrastructure developers and governments alike.

The Board believes the future development of AI infrastructure will increasingly depend upon integrated solutions capable of delivering both reliable energy and responsible water management.

Why This Matters in the UAE

Whilst the UAE is exceptionally well positioned to become a global AI hub, water security has long been recognised as one of the country's most important strategic prioritiesThe UAE has invested heavily in desalination, water infrastructure and resource management for decades, and these investments continue to expand as population growth, industrial development and digital infrastructure increase demand for clean water.

At the same time, recent geopolitical developments across the wider Middle East have further reinforced the importance of resilient infrastructure, secure supply chains and greater national self-sufficiency across critical sectors.

As governments throughout the region continue to strengthen long-term resilience, increasing strategic emphasis is being placed on investment in:

1.             Artificial Intelligence;

2.             Energy Infrastructure;

3.             Water Security;

4.             Food Security;

5.             Critical Digital Infrastructure;

6.             Advanced Manufacturing; and

7.             Supply Chain Resilience.

The Board believes these priorities are closely aligned with the long-term direction of AEG's strategy.

Building an Integrated Infrastructure Platform

When AEG first established its presence within the UAE, the Company's immediate objective was to identify and develop power-backed digital infrastructure opportunities capable of supporting AI, HPC and other compute-intensive applications.

The Company increasingly sees opportunities where reliable energy infrastructure can support complementary sectors including water infrastructure, sustainable resource management and technologies that contribute towards long-term infrastructure resilience.

Management believes this integrated approach has the potential to create greater long-term shareholder value whilst aligning AEG with several of the UAE's most significant strategic priorities.

Whilst the Company remains disciplined in its execution and all opportunities continue to be subject to satisfactory technical, commercial and contractual due diligence, the Board believes AEG is positioning itself within sectors expected to experience sustained long-term investment over the coming decade.

Looking Forward

As previously announced, AEG continues to evaluate a growing pipeline of opportunities across the UAE.

The Board believes its expanding operational presence, growing network of strategic relationships and increasing understanding of the regional market continue to strengthen the Company's ability to identify attractive infrastructure opportunities.

Further updates regarding the Company's operational activities, project pipeline and broader strategic initiatives will be provided as these developments progress.

Paul Elliott, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"Ahead of our Annual General Meeting, we felt it was important to explain not only what AEG is doing, but why we have chosen to focus our efforts on the UAE. Our strategy is based upon identifying long-term structural opportunities rather than responding to short-term market trends."

"The UAE is rapidly becoming one of the world's leading markets for artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and advanced technologies. At the same time, governments across the region continue to increase investment into energy security, water resilience, food security and critical infrastructure. We believe these themes are becoming increasingly interconnected."

"Our objective is to build a long-term infrastructure platform capable of supporting these national priorities. Whilst our immediate focus remains the development of power-backed AI infrastructure, we believe the convergence of energy, water and digital infrastructure will become one of the defining investment themes of the coming decade, and we intend to position AEG accordingly."

Active Energy Group Plc	Paul Elliott (CEO) Pankaj Rajani (Non-Executive Chairman)	[e-mail]
Website	LinkedIn	'X'
www.aegplc.com	www.linkedin.com/in/active-energy-group-plc/	(@aegplc) / X

 

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