Abu Dhabi plans to combine two offshore oil ventures

Abu Dhabi / Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. will combine two offshore oil and natural gas ventures operated with partners including BP Plc and ExxonMobil Corp., as the UAE producer takes measures to cope with the drop in oil prices over the past two years.
Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Co., known as Adma-Opco, and Zakum Development Co., known as Zadco, will be jointly led by Yasser Al Mazrouei, who currently serves as Adma-Opco’s chief executive officer, Adnoc said in a statement on Tuesday. The process will be completed by early 2018 and will be overseen by a committee with members from ADNOC and concession-holders including Total SA, BP and ExxonMobil. Zadco’s CEO Saif Al Suwaidi will retire, an ADNOC official said.
“The existing concession rights of our partners in the concessions currently operated by Adma-Opco and Zadco will not be affected by the consolidation,” HE Dr Sultan Al Jaber, United Arab Emirates Minister of State and ADNOC CEO, said in the statement. “Looking ahead, Adnoc will continue to review and consider all options, and pursue partners for concessions expiring in 2018.”
“This move has made logical sense for a long time and we would be doing it regardless of the price of oil,” Abdul Munim Al Kindy, director of exploration and production at ADNOC, said in an e-mailed statement. “This is about promoting efficiencies in the company and making it an optimally structured and agile organization that can effectively meet the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.”
ADNOC owns 60 percent of Adma-Opco with the rest being shared between BP, Japan Oil Development Co. Ltd., or Jodco, and Total. Adnoc’s partners in Zadco are ExxonMobil and Jodco. ADNOC will work with its partners to “maximize” oil output, according to the statement. The new entity is due to “yield significant financial and operational benefits,” the company said.