'Make energy great again,' says Adnoc CEO Sultan Al Jaber

The international investment arm of United Arab Emirates state oil company ADNOC will make a significant investment in US natural gas starting in the coming months, Adnoc CEO Sultan Al Jaber said on Tuesday.

The UAE is a member of the OPEC+ producer group and one of the world's top oil producers. ADNOC's wholly-owned international investment arm XRG has about $80 billion in assets and Reuters reported last week the UAE was considering options for an XRG IPO.

"It is time to make energy great again," he told the world's largest annual gathering of energy executives in Houston, mirroring the Make America Great Again slogan of US President Donald Trump.

"Over the next few months and foreseeable future you will see very large and significant investment by XRG in the United States," he said.

XRG would invest throughout the gas supply chain, from exploration and development through distribution, and wanted to be a one-stop shop for gas, he said.

Jaber said it was time for pragmatic energy policy and actions as the world needs all forms of energy supply to meet rising demand.

Oil demand would reach 109 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2035, up from 103 million bpd now, he said. Global power demand would rise 70% to 15,000 gigawatts from 9,000 GW, he said.

The race for supremacy in artificial intelligence worldwide was essentially an energy play, he said, due to the huge power demand needed for data processing.

XRG was designed to help meet the fast-growing demand of energy for AI, he added.

Jaber presided over the UN's COP-28 climate talks in December 2023, which took place in the UAE.

Jaber said he had wanted to inject realism and pragmatism into climate change talks when he took on that mandate.

Reuters