The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has recently announced the expansion of its strategic partnership model, as well as the more active management of its portfolio of assets.
Following the launch of this new initiative, Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Group CEO of ADNOC last week met with both potential and existing partners in China and Japan, according to a press release received by arabianoilandgas.com.
These discussions abroad, that follows days after ADNOC made public its landmark decision to undergo an economic transformation aligned to its 2030 objectives – including the share sale of its distribution business, focussed on the new partnership and co-investment opportunities created through ADNOC’s new approach.
The talks also explored the prospect of deepening the UAE’s bilateral relations with China and Japan, the ADNOC statement mentions.
ADNOC’s new initiative builds on its flexible operating model and its 2030 growth strategy. It will enable ADNOC to unlock and maximise significant value from across the Group, ensure competitiveness, drive business and revenue growth, enhance performance, and secure greater access for its products in key growth markets.
Al Jaber commented during his visit, “Chinese and Japanese companies have been amongst our most important and longest-standing partners and Asia represents tremendous growth opportunities for ADNOC. We are therefore seeking partners to co-invest across the different parts of our value chain and who will bring operational expertise and technology, as well as the ability to secure greater access to these fast-growing markets.”
This new approach also comes at a time when global economic growth and energy demand is shifting east. These shifting trends sit alongside a rapid increase in Asian demand for products derived from hydrocarbons – namely petrochemicals, plastics and polymers – which is expected to more than double in the next 25 years.
The region is also home to considerable investment, financing and banking expertise that ADNOC will seek to leverage as part of its new partnership model. ADNOC is therefore increasingly focussed on building and developing long-term partnerships with both new and existing counter parties in China and Japan, as well as across the fast-growing Asia region.
ADNOC has existing partnerships with a number of Chinese and Japanese companies across its upstream, midstream and downstream businesses. At the heart of ADNOC’s new partnership model is a range of new and compelling co-investment opportunities from across its value chain.
Current and potential partners expressed interest in ADNOC’s new partnership and investment opportunities, the statement reveals. This is due to a combination of their own domestic demand requirements for energy and petrochemical products, as well as the attractive investment and growth profiles of the opportunities themselves.
In China, Al Jaber met officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs including foreign minister Wang Yi and Deng Li, director-general for the MENA Region. He also met with existing and potential partners to brief them about ADNOC’s new, expanded partnership approach.
In Japan, the ADNOC chief executive had a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and other important ministers. Al Jaber held further meetings and discussions with ADNOC’s Japanese partners to discuss the oil giant’s new partnership and co-investment opportunities.
His visit to Japan coincided with the fifth Abu Dhabi-Japan Economic Council meeting in Tokyo where a number of senior Abu Dhabi officials discussed potential areas of cooperation around key economic sectors, including oil and gas.
Al Jaber concluded, “As ADNOC embarks on its new approach, we look forward to building on our successful partnerships in both China and Japan. We believe our mutual goals and objectives are aligned and that committed and long-term collaboration will help meet the growing energy demand of both countries, as well as promote sustainable economic growth and trade.”
