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Adnoc awards rig contract to expand Zakum operations

By Pramod Kumar
Adnoc Drilling and China’s Honghua Group partner as Adnoc expands Zakum offshore development with new rig contract Alamy via Reuters
Adnoc Drilling and China’s Honghua Group partner as Adnoc expands Zakum offshore development with new rig contract
  • $806m Adnoc Drilling contract
  • Three island oil rigs
  • Future Adnoc fleet growth planned

State-backed Adnoc is expanding operations at the offshore Zakum development project after one of its subsidiaries awarded a contract for three island oil rigs.

Adnoc Drilling won the $806 million contract from Adnoc Offshore and its CEO Abdulrahman Abdulla Al Seiari said this award will deliver high-quality returns well into 2038 and beyond.

The three new island rigs will operate on Adnoc’s existing and newly constructed artificial islands for drilling and completion of wells.

The rigs, expected to join the fleet between 2027 and 2028, will be developed by collaborating with Adnoc Drilling and China’s Honghua Group.

Adnoc Drilling launched a $1 billion IPO on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange in October, 2021, the exchange’s largest-ever listing on the ADX at that time. It’s shares closed 0.8 percent higher at at AED5.04 in daily trading on Monday, but is still down about 5 percent year to date.

In February Adnoc Drilling’s chief financial officer Youssef Salem said that the company is planning to invest $1 billion this year, with about $700 million allocated for technology-related US and Europe acquisitions.

At the end of 2024 Adnoc Drilling had 142 owned rigs. By 2028, the company plans to expand its rig fleet to more than 150.

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