Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Petroleum Council, SPC, launched, on Monday a new pricing mechanism for the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s, Adnoc, flagship onshore crude oil, Murban, and announced a significant increase in oil and gas reserves and new discoveries in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, at its meeting held at Adnoc’s headquarters.

The SPC meeting was presided over by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and Vice-Chairman of the SPC.

During the meeting, Sheikh Mohamed conveyed the encouragement and support of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as Adnoc continues to harness energy resources to create long-term and sustainable value for the nation. He commended Adnoc on its strong performance as it delivers its 2030 strategy and highlighted that Adnoc has been able to achieve its operational and financial targets, despite the volatile energy markets, due to its drive to continuously optimise its performance and maximise value from its assets and resources.

Sheikh Mohamed highlighted Adnoc’s ongoing transformation into a more performance-led and commercially-driven organisation and emphasised the central role Adnoc plays in enabling the UAE’s economic ambitions. He expressed the SPC’s recognition of Adnoc’s efforts to drive foreign investment into the UAE through its approach to strategic partnerships and investments.

Sheikh Mohamed and the SPC also reinforced the importance of a performance-led culture driven by a highly-skilled and qualified workforce. Sheikh Mohamed commended Adnoc on the progress it is making in attracting and developing the talent that will cater for its future growth.

After the meeting, Sheikh Mohamed reviewed the progress of Adnoc’s development projects at its headquarters, as well as its other works, such as a water fountain.

He was then briefed about the new facilities of Adnoc’s headquarters and toured a tunnel linking the building’s staff parking area and the main entrance to its northern and southern lobbies.

During the tour, he viewed the modern lighting on the green areas surrounding the building, as well as its new plaza area and the drilling heads and valves used in several oil fields, which all combine the modernity and originality of Adnoc.

He noted Adnoc has recruited over 3,200 Emirati nationals with advanced qualifications since 2016 and is set to employ an additional 1,258 by the end of 2019, including over 600 Adnoc scholars. He also acknowledged Adnoc’s plans to recruit more than 3,000 additional Emirati nationals over the next few years.

Sheikh Mohamed highlighted Adnoc’s drive to stimulate socio-economic development in the UAE through its In-Country Value (ICV) programme, which created an additional 1,000 private-sector jobs for Emirati talent in 2018 and is expected to grow over the coming years.The SPC also commended Adnoc for its industry leadership in applying artificial intelligence, AI, and embedding digitisation across its full value chain to increase efficiencies, empower its people and unlock greater value from its resources.

The SPC is the highest governing body of the oil and gas industry in Abu Dhabi. The Council formulates, approves, and oversees the implementation of Abu Dhabi’s petroleum policy and follows up its implementation across all areas of the petroleum industry to ensure that the set goals are achieved.

Other SPC members that attended the meeting are Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs; Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Managing Director of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority; Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s Court; Suhail bin Mohammed Faraj Faris Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Industry; Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of State and Adnoc Group CEO; Hamad Mubarak Al Shamsi, Secretary General of SPC; Dr. Ahmed Mubarak Al Mazrouie, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office; Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Affairs Authority, EAA; Jassem Mohamed Bu Ataba Al Zaabi, chairman of the Department of Finance Abu Dhabi; Eng. Awaidha Murshed Al Marar, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy,DoE; Abdullah Nasser Al Suwaidi; and Suhail Faris Ghanem Mazrouei.

Over the past 12 months, Adnoc has stepped up the pace of its transformation as it delivers its 2030 strategy. This has resulted in several significant achievements. The company struck a strategic equity partnership with Eni and OMV in its refining business and established a trading joint venture; concluded a landmark midstream pipeline infrastructure partnership with KKR, BlackRock, the Abu Dhabi Retirement Pensions and Benefits Fund,ADRPBF,and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC, unlocking almost $5 billion in value; successfully concluded Abu Dhabi’s debut competitive exploration block bid round and launched a second bid round.

In addition, Adnoc awarded LUKOIL a stake in the Ghasha ultra-sour gas concession, marking the first time a Russian company has joined an Adnoc concession; partnered with OCI to form a joint venture fertilizing company, creating the world’s largest exporter of nitrogen fertilizer and acquired a 10 percent stake in VTTI.

WAM