Abu Dhabi to host oil and Gas Industry exhibition in November
Abu Dhabi will host the oil and gas industry's largest on-line exhibition and conference, when the ADIPEC Virtual Conference brings together over 5,000 government ministers, global energy leaders and professionals to assess the collective measures the sector is putting in place to fasttrack recovery, post COVID-19.
The ADIPEC Virtual Conference will run from November 9 to 12 and will feature more than 135 sessions, with over 700 renowned speakers and 115 technical sessions. The virtual exhibition will host more than 100 exhibiting companies and the live content will give attendees access to world-class industry content.
"ADIPEC is regarded as the premier thought leadership event within the oil and gas industry, bringing together industry leaders and renowned technical experts to discuss, debate and to share ideas. Despite facing unprecedented challenges in 2020, our industry has shown remarkable flexibility, commitment and a strong resilience in responding to adverse market conditions," said Omar Suwaina Al Suwaidi, Chairman of ADIPEC.
During the ADIPEC Virtual Conference over 70 government ministers, CEOs, global business leaders and industry specialists will focus on how the energy sector is responding and adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic. Against a backdrop of the complex trends and dynamics that have impacted global markets they will also provide new perspectives on how the industry can build future resilience and engage with the challenges and opportunities of energy transition.
This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the ADIPEC awards as industry leaders honour the people, projects and ideas that continue to shape the future of the oil and gas industry. This year's event will be held online in a virtual ceremony on Monday 9 November.
Alongside the virtual conference programme, the technical conference organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers will bring together the energy and non-energy technical leaders, who are at the forefront of the postpandemic economic recovery. The expanded ADIPEC Virtual Downstream Technical Conference, organised by dmg events, will explore the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digitalisation in refining and petrochemicals; decarbonisation; the future workforce; energy security, efficiency and management and the future impact of the downstream on the circular economy.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Pension Fund (ADPF) and ADQ, the holding company for multiple assets, will invest $ 2.1 billion in select gas pipeline infrastructure assets owned by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).
ADNOC will thus divest 20 per cent in ADNOC Gas Pipelines HoldCo, a unit that holds the energy giant's complete stake in ADNOC Gas Pipeline Assets, to Abu Dhabi Pension Fund and ADQ. ADNOC Gas Pipelines has lease rights to 38 gas pipelines covering a total of 982 kilometers.
In July, a consortium of global investors invested $10.1 billion for a collective 49 per cent stake in the same assets. "The addition of these high-calibre UAE investors sets a new benchmark for leading global and domestic institutional investors to deploy longterm equity capital into key ADNOC energy infrastructure assets," said Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Group CEO. With the addition of these domestic investors, ADNOC can also tap new pools of long-term equity capital, while still maintaining operating and ownership control over the assets included as part of the investment agreement, the company said.
"This follow-on investment will generate stable, long-term value and returns to both Abu Dhabi Pension Fund and ADQ's stakeholders," said Al Jaber. "Their engagement highlights and underlines the attractiveness and long-term value creation potential of our unique energy assets to the global investment community."
Earlier, The privately owned Dana Gas has picked up a $90 million corporate lending facility from Mashreq Bank, for a one-year term and which can be extended to a further four years if the company wants to.
The credit facility follows Dana Gas's announcement that it is "exploring financial options to settle its sukuk by the due date". Along with cash reserves, the Mashreq facility will allow full redemption of the sukuk at the maturity date of October 31.
The outstanding total for the sukuk is currently $309 million. The one-year facility is priced at an initial 3 per cent per annum margin over LIBOR (London inter-bank offered rate). It will be repaid when the planned sale of Dana Gas's Egyptian assets is completed.
Dr. Patrick Allman-Ward, CEO of Dana Gas, said: "This facility is testament to Dana Gas's financial and operational strength despite the challenging market conditions brought about by the global health pandemic and its negative impact on the global economy and oil and gas prices." In a statement, Ahmed Abdelaal, Group CEO of Mashreq Bank said: " Mashreq aims to offer innovative financing solutions to its partners and clients, and we are delighted to extend this credit facility to Dana Gas, which is the Middle East's largest regional private sector natural gas company."