Law & Regulation
Law No. 4 of 2018 on the Regulation of Electricity and Water Supply Works
This Law controls who may undertake specified electricity and water connection and supply works, the approvals and conditions attached to those activities, and the protection and compliant operation of the relevant networks and installations. It is not a complete electricity-market or water-resources code.
Legal Significance
What This Instrument Does
It regulates connection of electricity and water to licensed places, buildings and facilities; activities connected with internal networks, supply works and related installations; approvals, technical compliance, inspection and enforcement. Later instruments prescribe the controls for specified activities.
Why It Matters
Utility availability is not equivalent to a legal right to connect. Developers must align design, phasing, capacity and internal networks with authority approvals. EPC and facilities teams face interface risk at connection points, metering and handover; lenders need evidence that the project can lawfully receive and maintain essential utilities.
Key Provisions
- Regulated supply works
Activities involving connection and supply of electricity or water within the Law's scope.
- Authorization and competent authority
Approval controls and institutional responsibility for regulated works.
- Eligible premises and connection
Legal conditions for connecting licensed places, buildings and facilities.
- Internal networks and connection points
Boundary between public system interfaces and privately developed internal infrastructure.
- Design and technical compliance
Requirement to comply with approved standards and specifications located partly in subordinate material.
- Contractors and activity controls
Conditions on persons undertaking regulated connection or network activities.
- Metering and consumption infrastructure
Controls supporting measurement, supply administration and system integrity.
- Temporary and phased supply
Legal basis for controlled interim or staged arrangements where permitted.
- Self-production and surplus interface
Activities requiring specific authorization rather than assumed rights to generate or export.
- Inspection and access
Authority powers to verify installations and compliance.
- Prohibited acts and network protection
Restrictions on unauthorized connection, interference or unsafe works.
- Enforcement and penalties
Administrative and statutory consequences for non-compliance.
When You Would Use This
Utility-capacity and connection diligence
Assessing capacity and connection rights during diligence.
Master-development phasing
Phasing utility delivery across a master development.
Temporary construction supply
Arranging temporary construction electricity/water supply.
Design responsibility matrices
Allocating design responsibility across parties.
Internal-network approvals
Securing internal-network approvals.
Connection-agreement review
Reviewing connection agreements.
Metering and commissioning
Planning metering and commissioning.
Self-generation/export analysis
Analysing self-generation or surplus-export arrangements.
Handover
Managing utility handover.
Utility-related finance CPs
Satisfying utility-related finance conditions precedent.
InfraLex Relevance
The Law explains a critical interface between physical development and regulated public networks. InfraLex should distinguish the statutory permission layer from KAHRAMAA technical manuals, connection applications and the commercial allocation of connection risk in EPC or development agreements.
Legal Framework Position
- Sector RegulationPrimary / Framework Instrument
Instrument Overview
- Official Citation
- Law No. 4 of 2018
- Instrument Type
- Law / Act
- Source Language
- Arabic
- Enactment Date
- 4 April 2018
- Last Verified
- 4 September 2026