Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State; and CEO, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC): Interview

Interview: Sultan Al Jaber

With Abu Dhabi’s growing demand for gas, how does ADNOC plan to ensure future supply for its own operations and for the emirate?

SULTAN AL JABER: Without a doubt, meeting Abu Dhabi’s growing demand for gas is a critical objective and rests high on ADNOC’s list of priorities. We are pursuing a variety of solutions across our portfolio, from conventional and sour gas all the way to a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU).

Last year Al Hosn Gas, the largest sour gas facility of its kind in the region, achieved its full production target of 1bn standard cu feet per day (scfd). Later this year we will be bringing an FSRU facility online, which will add an additional 500m scfd. Furthermore, we are continuously evaluating new and undeveloped fields, including unconventional gas. We are also assessing the use of innovative technologies and alternative methods – such as carbon capture, usage and storage – to improve efficiency, optimise our own consumption and liberate some gas. These activities will help develop our capacity and supply, and will be conducted on the basis of commercial viability across our broader portfolio of gas assets.

How has ADNOC’s strategic focus adjusted in light of existing oil prices?

AL JABER: The current low price of oil gives us an opportunity we should not shy away from to examine more closely the efficiency of everything we do. This process will ensure our company’s resilience and make it even stronger. We are working closely with everyone across the ADNOC family and with our strategic partners to identify, across the whole range of activities in our group, where we can do things better, be less cost intensive and perform more intelligently.

In terms of increasing commerciality, we are examining the entire length of the value chain to identify new areas for growth. For example, we are working on strengthening and expanding our downstream petrochemicals and refining business to ensure we harness maximum value.

We are also focusing on innovation and technology development, and ADNOC will look to strengthen its ability to develop and integrate new technologies. We will leverage internal capabilities and also look to our partners to continue contributing to our technological progress. This is crucial, especially as we explore new methods to extend the lifespan of our fields and to maintain strong production levels for the future.

In addition we are developing the rich pool of talent that already exists within the ADNOC Group of companies. Our people are the past, present and future of ADNOC and our most valuable resource. So we are identifying and bringing along the next generation of the company’s leadership. We have a responsibility to develop ADNOC’s potential from within and to forge a forward-looking organisation underpinned by a performance-led culture.

ADNOC has set a production target of 3.5m barrels per day (bpd) by 2018. Is the company on track to achieve this?

AL JABER: As I have mentioned, our mission is to remain a reliable supplier focused on maximising value. Most importantly, we are focused on maintaining our current level of production as well as our investment programme. And of course we are also committed to achieving the overall target of 3.5m bpd, while we take into consideration prevailing market conditions.

We are closely monitoring price, supply and demand, among other market variables. ADNOC has always been an agile company capable of quickly responding to the market and ensuring that its supply is aligned with projected demand.