Jurisdiction Index / United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
JCI composite · as of · methodology v0
United Arab Emirates scores 69.7/100 on the Compute Institute Jurisdiction Competitiveness Index (Tier 2, Competitive), ranking #3 of 30 rated jurisdictions with a positive outlook, as of June 15, 2026 under methodology v0. Its strongest dimension is Capital & Ecosystem Depth at 8/10; its weakest is Power Cost at 6.3/10. 20 of 22 sub-factors are scored on E1–E2 evidence (data confidence A). The positive outlook is driven by 2 forward-looking signals (+3.15 net points, E3–E4 evidence): time-to-power (E4) and committed capital (E4).
Dimension breakdown
Seven dimensions, each 0–10, weighted per methodology v0. JCI = Σ(dimension × weight) × 10.
Power Availability & Deliverability
Power Cost
Speed to Build
Regulatory & AI Policy Environment
Fiscal & Incentives
Capital & Ecosystem Depth
Stability & Execution Risk
Outlook drivers — Positive (+3.15 net points)
Forward-looking E3–E4 signals. They move the outlook only — never the base score.
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Time-to-power +1.40 pts as of
“Sovereign-directed projects get energized fast — Stargate UAE phase 1 (200 MW) due Q3 2026 within ~18 months of announcement; non-anchor projects face less codified timelines.”
Source: Stargate UAE phase 1 timeline (The National, single-outlet press) (www.thenationalnews.com)
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Committed capital +1.75 pts as of
“Stargate UAE phase 1 financed and under construction; Khazna multi-site expansion financed; 5 GW UAE-US AI Campus beyond phase 1 remains E3/E4.”
Source: Stargate UAE phase 1 timeline (The National, single-outlet press) (www.thenationalnews.com)
Sub-factor scores and sources
Every base-scored input below carries E1–E2 evidence: a justification, an evidence-level grade, and a link to the underlying source document.
Power Availability & Deliverability — 6.4/10 (weight 20%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grid headroom 40% of dimension | 7 /10 | EWEC centrally procures capacity ahead of demand (Barakah 5.6 GW nuclear online, multi-GW solar+storage procurements); state-directed allocation avoids open-queue congestion. as of | EWEC statement of future capacity requirements www.ewec.ae | |
| Time-to-power 35% of dimension | — | Excluded — no E1–E2 evidence available; weaker evidence cannot enter a base score. | — | — |
| Energy mix & expandability 15% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | Barakah nuclear, world-record-cost solar pipeline plus firm gas; round-the-clock solar+storage procurement (e.g., 1 GW RTC project) under construction. as of | EWEC statement of future capacity requirements www.ewec.ae | |
| Water availability 10% of dimension | 2.5 /10 | Extreme baseline water stress (WRI Aqueduct top category); desalination-dependent cooling raises cost and resilience exposure despite air-cooled design mitigation. as of | WRI Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas www.wri.org |
Power Cost — 6.3/10 (weight 12.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial electricity price 60% of dimension | 6 /10 | Commercial/industrial tariffs ~AED 0.23-0.45/kWh equivalents (~USD 60-120/MWh by emirate and load class); large-user deals negotiable with EWEC/DEWA. as of | DEWA slab tariff schedule www.dewa.gov.ae | |
| Price trajectory & exposure 25% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | Major subsidy reform already executed; cheap new solar and nuclear additions damp escalation; some fuel-surcharge exposure remains. as of | EWEC statement of future capacity requirements www.ewec.ae | |
| Cost certainty / contractability 15% of dimension | 7 /10 | Long-term sovereign offtake structures available to anchor projects; AED pegged to USD removes FX risk on power contracts. as of | Central Bank of the UAE — fixed USD peg www.centralbank.ae |
Speed to Build — 7.2/10 (weight 17.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Permitting regime 40% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | State-directed fast-track for strategic projects; free-zone one-stop-shops in force; minimal third-party litigation exposure. as of | UAE free zone regimes (e.g., KEZAD/Masdar City statutes) www.kezad.ae | |
| Observed construction velocity 35% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | Khazna delivered repeated 30-100 MW builds on schedule and Stargate phase 1 tracking ~18 months, but no completed >=500 MW campus yet. as of | G42/Khazna sponsor disclosures www.g42.ai | |
| Labor & supply capacity 25% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | Imported-labor model with proven megaproject delivery capacity and duty-free equipment import via free zones. as of | UN Comtrade — transformer imports (HS 8504), Argentina comtradeplus.un.org |
Regulatory & AI Policy Environment — 6.5/10 (weight 12.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI-specific law in force 35% of dimension | 6 /10 | No restrictive AI statute; enabling instruments in force (AI ministry/office, free-zone digital regulations, PDPL); permissive with codified state support but discretionary. as of | UAE Federal Decree-Law 45/2021 (PDPL) and AI governance framework u.ae | |
| DC-specific regulation 35% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | No moratoria or capacity rationing; allocation is state-directed and supportive, but informal gatekeeping substitutes for transparent rules. as of | EWEC statement of future capacity requirements www.ewec.ae | |
| Regulatory predictability 30% of dimension | 7 /10 | WGI Regulatory Quality ~80th percentile and consistent pro-investment administration; rule-of-law mechanisms less independent than OECD peers. as of | World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators www.worldbank.org |
Fiscal & Incentives — 7.4/10 (weight 10%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enacted incentives 40% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | Free-zone regimes in force grant customs exemption, 0% qualifying income and full repatriation; no DC-specific abatement needed given baseline. as of | UAE free zone regimes (e.g., KEZAD/Masdar City statutes) www.kezad.ae | |
| Headline tax burden 40% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | 9% federal CIT (since 2023) with 0% qualifying free-zone rate; 15% DMTT applies to large MNE groups under Pillar Two from 2025. as of | UAE Ministry of Finance — Corporate Tax (Federal Decree-Law 47/2022) mof.gov.ae | |
| Incentive durability 20% of dimension | 7 /10 | Free-zone guarantees are long-standing (50-yr horizons) with no clawback history; Pillar Two DMTT shows regime can shift for large groups. as of | UAE Ministry of Finance — Corporate Tax (Federal Decree-Law 47/2022) mof.gov.ae |
Capital & Ecosystem Depth — 8/10 (weight 12.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Committed capital 40% of dimension | — | Excluded — no E1–E2 evidence available; weaker evidence cannot enter a base score. | — | — |
| Ecosystem 30% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | Growing DC stock (Khazna ~500 MW+), strong subsea connectivity, hyperscaler presence; GPU access now licensed (35k GB300 approval, E1) but remains conditional on US export-control posture. as of | G42/Khazna sponsor disclosures www.g42.ai | |
| Sovereign/anchor capital availability 30% of dimension | 9.5 /10 | MGX (AI-dedicated sovereign vehicle), Mubadala and ADIA with explicit AI-infrastructure mandates in force; deepest sovereign AI capital pool in cohort. as of | MGX fund disclosures www.mgx.ae |
Stability & Execution Risk — 7.4/10 (weight 15%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political/policy continuity 40% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | Highly consistent state policy under stable leadership; no electoral reversal risk, but personalized governance carries succession/key-man concentration. as of | World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators www.worldbank.org | |
| Currency, transfer & convertibility 35% of dimension | 8.5 /10 | AED-USD peg since 1997, no capital controls (IMF AREAER), AA sovereign ratings. as of | IMF AREAER — United States www.elibrary-areaer.imf.org | |
| Physical & geopolitical risk 25% of dimension | 5.5 /10 | Regional conflict adjacency (Gulf escalation scenarios, 2022 Houthi strikes on Abu Dhabi) and structural dependency on US chip-export licensing are material tail risks. as of | ACLED / public risk data acleddata.com |
Signals
Recent ingested source documents linked to this jurisdiction via extracted claims or triage mentions, newest first.
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.00
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· AGBI · relevance 0.00
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· The National · relevance 0.00
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.00
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.30
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.00
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.30
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.20
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.20
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· MEED — UAE · relevance 0.20
Scores are reproducible from the frozen inputs snapshot recorded at computation time (2026-06-15T23:52:35+00:00). See the full methodology for rubrics, weights, and the evidence ladder.