Adnoc awards offshore blocks to consortium
dubai — The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has awarded two offshore blocks to a consortium led by Italy’s multinational energy company Eni and Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Public Company Limited (PTTEP) after a competitive bidding round.
The two blocks in the northwest of Abu Dhabi — Offshore 1 and Offshore 2 — are the first blocks to be awarded among the geographical areas that were offered for commercial bidding by Adnoc in April 2018, as part of Abu Dhabi’s first competitive open block licensing strategy. The award of the two blocks was endorsed by Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC).
Under the terms of the agreements, Eni will operate the concessions and PTTEP and Eni will both hold a 100 per cent stake in the exploration phase, investing at least Dh844 million to explore for oil and gas, and appraise the existing discoveries in Offshore Block 2. At the same time, the exploration and appraisal plans for the Offshore Block 1 will be finalised. The two blocks cover a combined area of approximately 8,000 square kilometres.
Upon successful exploration — and having established the commerciality of the discovered resources — Eni and PTTEP will, together, be granted the opportunity to develop and produce any discoveries, with Adnoc retaining the option to hold a 60 per cent stake in the production phase.
The concession agreements were signed by Dr Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Adnoc Group CEO; Claudio Descalzi, CEO of Eni; and Phongsthorn Thavisin, president and CEO of PTTEP.
abu dhabi — The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has begun to unlock huge reserves of previously uneconomical gas with the help of technology and partnerships.
“By thinking differently, applying technology creatively and adjusting our business model, we are on a path to gas self-sufficiency and will ultimately transition the UAE to become a net exporter of natural gas,” said Dr Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Group CEO of Adnoc.
He was speaking at the third Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum taking place in Abu Dhabi.
In response to the changes in the world’s energy markets, Adnoc continues to optimise its resources and engage with strategic partners, who bring new technology and open up growth markets, said Al Jaber.
The new approach to partnerships is at the heart of Adnoc’s $45 billion downstream expansion strategy, Al Jaber stressed.
As demand grows for plastics and polymers, Adnoc is creating the single largest integrated refining and petrochemicals complex in the world in Ruwais.
A relentless focus on operational efficiency while balancing market conditions with long-term future growth requires a careful, calibrated and agile response from the oil and gas industry, said Al Jaber.
The minister said while global economic growth may slow in the short term, long-term fundamentals remain robust. By 2030, Al Jaber said, there will be three billion new consumers and as breakthrough