The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has announced it will be investing just under $1bn into its Umm Shaif offshore field – a site that has been in operation for 60 years and that the group describes as its “most historic” asset. 

The UAE state-owned energy major has awarded the $946m engineering, procurement, and construction contract to the National Petroleum Construction Company after a “competitive” tender process.  

With anticipated completion in 2025, the contract is made up of two packages: the first to support network expansion and the second to build new well-head towers. The former includes developing existing facilities, as well as installing new subsea cables and pipelines, while the latter will include ‘“fit for future’” technologies, such as rigless electrical submersible pumps.  

The investment sits within ADNOC’s wider target of reaching five million barrels of crude oil production by 2030, with Umm Shaif providing 275,000 barrels per day. The group has said it hopes the latest investment will help to streamline operations while maintaining this output level. 

In a statement, ADNOC upstream executive director Yaser Saeed Almazrouei said: “This important award for the long-term development of ADNOC’s pioneer offshore Umm Shaif field will maximise efficiencies while maintaining future output…In addition, the development plan for Umm Shaif underpins ADNOC’s commitment to maintain its position as a leading low-cost oil producer and strengthens our role as a reliable energy provider to customers around the world.” 

Under the contract, 75% of the total award value will be channeled back into the UAE economy in service of ADNOC’s In-Country Value program – an initiative set up in 2018 to achieve maximum optimisation in the nation’s oil and gas industry, while also aiding sustainable growth in the country.