UAE’s giant Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has awarded two substantial contracts totalling $2 billion (AED 7.49 billion) to ADNOC Drilling for the Hail and Ghasha development project.

The contracts comprise $1.3 billion for integrated drilling services and fluids and $711 million for the provision of four Island Drilling Units.

A third contract, valued at $681 million, was also awarded to ADNOC Logistics & Services (ADNOC L&S) for the provision of offshore logistics and marine support services. Also this week, ADNOC L&S moved to buy Zakher Marine International (ZMI), an Abu Dhabi-based owner and operator of offshore support vessels and self-propelled jack-up barges.

All three of the contracts will cover the Hail and Ghasha drilling campaign for a maximum of ten years.

The Hail and Ghasha development project is part of the Ghasha Concession, which is the world’s largest offshore sour gas development and a key component of ADNOC’s integrated gas masterplan as well as an important enabler of gas self-sufficiency for the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Managing Director and Group CEO of ADNOC said: “ADNOC is committed to unlocking the UAE’s abundant natural gas reserves to enable domestic gas self-sufficiency, industrial growth and diversification, as well as to meet growing global gas demand, in line with the UAE Leadership’s wise directives. Abu Dhabi’s vast gas resources can play an increasingly important role in providing lower-carbon energy to meet the demands of today and tomorrow, while the world still relies on hydrocarbons.”

Production from the Ghasha Concession is expected to start around 2025, ramping up to produce more than 1.5 billion standard cubic feet per day (scfd) of natural gas before the end of the decade. Four artificial islands have already been completed and development drilling is underway.

In November last year, ADNOC and its partners awarded two Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) contracts for the Dalma gas development project, within the Ghasha Concession. They also awarded a contract to update the Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) for the Hail and Ghasha project. The updated design is expected to be completed by the end of the year and will further optimize costs and timing, as well as potentially accelerate the integration of carbon capture.

In February this year, ADNOC also awarded framework agreements to four oilfield services providers – ADNOC Drilling, Schlumberger, Haliburton, and Weatherford – valued at $1.94 billion to enable drilling growth in its operations.

Since listing on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, ADNOC Drilling has been implementing a fleet expansion programme. The most recent rig acquisitions include two premium jack-up drilling rigs bought from Well Target Five Limited and Well Target Six Limited and one jack-up rig bought from India’s Aban Offshore.