ADNOC, Total deliver UAE’s first unconventional gas

Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC and French super-major Total have achieved first gas at the Ruwais Diyab unconventional gas concession, the NOC announced on Wednesday.

The delivery marks the commencement of unconventional gas production in the UAE and a key step towards the country’s goal of gas self-sufficiency.

By 2030, ADNOC expects to reach production of 28.3 mcm (1 bcf) per day of gas from the onshore concession, which covers around 6,000 square kilometres and is located 200 kilometres west of Abu Dhabi city.

In November 2018, Total assumed operatorship of the licence with a 40% stake, bringing to the project its expertise in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. ADNOC holds the remaining 60%. The project plan includes a two-year exploration period followed by a four-year appreciation period.

The late Hatem Nuseibeh, then-president of Total UAE, told The Energy Year in 2019 that the first two years of the project would be devoted to testing the potential in one area of the licence.

For more on the potential of Diyab and other UAE gas plays, read our 2019 interview with Hatem Nuseibeh.

ADNOC said the gas delivery – coming just two years after the agreement with Total was signed – also marked the earliest such milestone in an unconventional gas project in the Middle East.

“The accelerated progress in Ruwais Diyab is a testament to the long-standing partnership between ADNOC and Total, which has enabled us to expedite the learning curve in the production of unconventional gas resources, provided cost optimization opportunities and driven efficiencies,” Yaser Saeed Almazrouei, ADNOC Upstream’s executive director, said.

Last year, Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC) announced the discovery of 4.53 tcm (160 tcf) of unconventional gas recoverable resources.