The UAE and China have signed two deals for the Chinese national oil company to acquire stakes in two UAE offshore concessions in an effort to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation.
The agreements were signed by Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Wang Yilin, president of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). Under the offers, which have a duration of 40 years, CNPC, through its majority listed subsidiary PetroChina, acquires stakes in two offshore concession areas of Abu Dhabi.
PetroChina obtains a share of 10 percent in the Umm Shaif and Nasr concession and a participation of the 10 percent in the grant of Lower Zakum.
PetroChina paid 2,1 billion dirham (575 million US dollars) to enter the Umm Shaif and Nasr concession and 2,2 billion dirham to enter the Lower Zakum concession.
Both concessions will be managed by ADNOC Offshore on behalf of all dealers.
Al Jaber said that the collaboration of ADNOC with CNPC, China's largest oil and gas producer and supplier, will further deepen the strategic and economic relations between the UAE and China.
Wang said the agreements will strengthen CNPC's growing relationship with ADNOC and help meet China's growing energy demand and help optimize the business portfolio and improve PetroChina's profitability.
Through PetroChina, CNPC produces 52% of Chinese crude and 71% of its natural gas.
In 2016, crude oil production from PetroChina's domestic business was 763,8 million barrels, while domestic production of marketable natural gas was 3.008,3 billion cubic feet, the company said on its website. official.
In February 2017, CNPC obtained an 8% interest in the Abu Dhabi onshore concession, managed by ADNOC Onshore. It also acquired a 40 percent stake in the Al Yasat concession.
Al Jaber added that "energy cooperation is an increasingly important aspect of the UAE's relations with China, the world's No. 1 oil importer and an important growing market for our petrochemicals".
The Umm Shaif Arab field features a huge gas cap, one of the largest in the region, with rich reserves of condensates.
The gas cap is superimposed on an oil edge, which in combination with the Nasr field has a capacity for producing crude oil of 460.000 barrels per day.
ADNOC plans to process 500 million cubic meters of gas per day from Umm Shaif's gas cap to help meet Abu Dhabi's growing domestic energy demand.
Abu Dhabi hosts the 90% of oil reserves in the United Arab Emirates, which represent the 7% of the world's known oil reserves.
