Pakinam Kafafi is a distinguished Egyptian energy executive who serves as the Chief Executive Officer of TAQA Arabia, Egypt’s largest privately owned energy distribution company. With more than 25 years of experience in the sector, she has been instrumental in shaping Egypt’s energy landscape and driving TAQA’s expansion across gas, power, renewable energy, and petroleum distribution.
Kafafi joined TAQA Arabia at its founding in 2006 and was appointed CEO in 2013. Under her leadership, the company has achieved sustained growth and strategic diversification despite challenging economic conditions. In November 2024, TAQA Arabia signed a memorandum of understanding with France’s Voltalia and the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy to explore the development of a 3.2 GW hybrid wind-solar power plant in the Suez Governorate to repower the Zafarana wind farm. Earlier, in 2022, she oversaw the acquisition of Rosetta Energy’s LNG arm and another Voltalia partnership to develop a green hydrogen production facility in the Suez Canal Zone.
Before becoming CEO, Kafafi served as TAQA Arabia’s Strategy & Investment Executive Director and previously as Vice President at EFG-Hermes Investment Banking. She currently sits on several boards, including the Arabian Cement Company, Digital Finance Holding (DFIN)—Egypt’s leading fintech platform—and the British Egyptian Business Association (BEBA). She also serves as an advisory board member for Fawry Yawmy, a fintech-based investment fund co-sponsored by Misr Capital and Fawry.
Kafafi’s leadership has been repeatedly recognized by Forbes Middle East, which ranked her among the Top 100 Power Businesswomen for four consecutive years, most recently at #21. She has also been named among the Top Fifty Women Performing in Egypt and honored by The Global Economics Magazine as Best CEO in the Energy Sector. A long-standing member of the American Chamber of Commerce, she continues to champion both corporate excellence and social responsibility.
Believing that success is measured not only by profits but by community impact, Kafafi has led TAQA Arabia’s investment of more than 50 million Egyptian pounds in corporate social responsibility programs—supporting healthcare, education, and community development projects, including a major eye hospital in Suez.
Through her strategic foresight and unwavering commitment to sustainability, Pakinam Kafafi continues to redefine leadership in Egypt’s energy sector and position TAQA Arabia as a regional force in the transition toward a cleaner, more inclusive energy future.