ADNOC Announces $548Mln Contract for New Main Gas Line

A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022. (AFP)
A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022. (AFP)
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ADNOC Announces $548Mln Contract for New Main Gas Line

A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022. (AFP)
A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022. (AFP)

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) announced Monday awarding a AED2.01 billion ($548 million) contract to build a new main gas line at its Lower Zakum field offshore of Abu Dhabi.

The award will increase Lower Zakum field’s gas production capacity from 430 million to 700 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD), supporting ADNOC’s plans to enable gas self-sufficiency for the United Arab Emirates and cater for increasing global energy demand.

The new pipeline will cater for the increased volume of associated gas produced by Lower Zakum field as the field’s oil production capacity increases to 450,000 barrels of oil per day by 2025.

ADNOC Upstream Executive Director Yaser Saeed al-Mazrouei, said: “This contract award will enable us to produce more gas as we increase production capacity from Lower Zakum field.”

It will support ADNOC’s integrated gas masterplan, which is driving competitive gas recovery to enable gas self-sufficiency for the UAE and industrial growth, while also helping to meet the increasing global demand for energy.

The project will be completed in 2025 and will see the construction of a new subsea pipeline that will run 85 kilometers from Zakum West Super Complex to Das Island.

It also includes provisions to construct, install and test a new platform at the super complex, as well as a new gas receiving facility at Das Island.

Natural gas is playing an increasingly important role in the energy transition as both a feedstock and a fuel as it burns with significantly lower-carbon intensity than coal.

With this award, ADNOC Offshore and its strategic international partners have invested more than $5 billion in recent weeks in the long-term development of Abu Dhabi's offshore operations.

The awards included contracts worth more than $3.4 billion awarded to ADNOC Drilling to accelerate offshore growth activities and a $1.1 billion contract awarded to ADNOC Logistics and Services to enhance offshore operations.



IMF to Lower Member Borrowing Costs… Egypt among Beneficiary Countries

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva (Reuters)
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva (Reuters)
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IMF to Lower Member Borrowing Costs… Egypt among Beneficiary Countries

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva (Reuters)
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva (Reuters)

The International Monetary Fund on Friday approved measures that will reduce its members' borrowing costs by about $1.2 billion annually, the fund's Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.
According to research from Boston University's Global Development Policy Center, the five countries paying the highest surcharges are Ukraine, Egypt, Argentina, Ecuador and Pakistan.
“The approved measures will lower IMF borrowing costs for members by 36%, or about $1.2 billion annually,” Georgieva said in a statement.
“The expected number of countries subject to surcharges in fiscal year 2026 will fall from 20 to 13,” she added.
This year, the IMF decided to review its policy on charges and surcharges for the first time since 2016, as higher interest rates globally have pushed borrowing costs higher.
The fund charges regular interest, plus surcharges for loans above a certain threshold or duration, and commitment fees for precautionary arrangements.
“While substantially lowered, charges and surcharges remain an essential part of the IMF's cooperative lending and risk management framework, where all members contribute and all can benefit from support when needed,” Georgieva said.
The changes will take effect on November 1.
Argentina, currently the IMF's largest debtor, will save over $3 billion with the changes, according to the country’s Finance Secretary Pablo Quirno.
But Friday's announcement falls short of calls by academics, non-profit groups and other economists, who have argued for a full cancellation of IMF surcharges, which they say place extra burdens on borrowing countries at a time when they are in dire economic circumstances and counteract the impact of IMF lending.