Abu Dhabi's state energy company Adnoc said it will award Dh200 billion ($55 billion) in project contracts over the next three years, accelerating a construction push that doubles as a strategic bet on the UAE's industrial economy.
The contracts, spanning upstream and downstream operations, represent the first major tranche of the $150 billion five-year capex plan the company's board approved last November. They come just days after the UAE formally exited Opec and less than 10 weeks since Iranian missile and drone strikes damaged energy infrastructure across the country, including gas facilities at the Habshan complex central to Adnoc’s own operations.
The announcement comes as Abu Dhabi’s oil exports remain constrained by Iran's effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow chokepoint through which a fifth of the world's crude normally flows. Despite a slump in the capital markets as a result of the war, the UAE’s sovereign buffers, equivalent to 184 per cent of gross domestic product, the UAE has maintained capital expenditure even as regional economies reevaluate spending.
