ADNOC and BHGE sign partnership to boost ADNOC Drilling's capabilities

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Baker Hughes, a GE company have signed a strategic partnership agreement to support the growth and development of ADNOC’s subsidiary, ADNOC Drilling, into a fully integrated drilling and well construction provider

 As part of the agreement, BHGE will acquire a five per cent stake in ADNOC Drilling for US$550mn, with ADNOC Drilling valued by the transaction at US$11bn. BHGE will be the sole provider of certain proprietary leading-edge and differentiated equipment and technologies related to the integrated drilling offering, supporting ADNOC Drilling’s growth. Together, ADNOC and BHGE will deliver more competitive well completion times, greater drilling efficiencies and better well economics, and will capitalise on new business.

The partnership represents the first time that ADNOC has brought an international strategic partner to acquire a direct equity stake in one of its existing services businesses.  It will enable ADNOC to capture more value from every barrel of oil it produces as it plans to grow its conventional drilling activity by 40 per cent by 2025 and substantially ramp up the number of its unconventional wells, in line with its 2030 smart growth strategy. ADNOC Drilling will remain the sole rig provider to ADNOC Group Companies and capitalise on ADNOC’s growing upstream activity by deploying its new integrated offering to capture up to 30 per cent of the drilling and completion market over the next three years, as it demonstrates increasing drilling efficiencies and improved customer service levels.

The two partners will be able to leverage ADNOC Drilling’s existing rig fleet capacity with limited capital expenditure outlay. The partnership will gain significant new business opportunities, including the potential to offer integrated drilling services beyond the UAE’s borders, according to ADNOC.

H.E. Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and ADNOC Group CEO, said, “This unique partnership with BHGE comes at an important time in the drilling needs of Abu Dhabi as ADNOC grows its conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon resources and as we see future potential for further regional growth. It will ensure we will be able to better service our upstream growth while capturing and retaining greater value.

“The partnership forms an important building block of ADNOC’s 2030 smart growth strategy as we continue to drive operational efficiency and performance, and unlock even more value from every barrel we produce. The combined capabilities and expertise from this partnership will create greater drilling efficiencies and faster well completion times, generate attractive returns and enable the transfer of know-how and access to technology. Importantly, it will also drive job creation and economic growth, as well as maintain a healthy level of competition in the dynamic UAE oilfield services market.”

“We are very pleased to take a minority stake in ADNOC Drilling to jointly develop and further grow the company’s technical capabilities, market access and value,” said BHGE chairman and CEO Lorenzo Simonelli. “Supported by BHGE’s leading technology and service portfolio, ADNOC Drilling will enable ADNOC to unlock significant value from their untapped resources, while building local capabilities and accelerating overall market growth. The transaction significantly increases our activity in the region and demonstrates our unique ability to create value for our customers and shareholders through innovative commercial arrangements, partnerships and leading technology solutions.”