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Joint Oil Exploration, Exploitation and Petroleum Services Company (Joint Oil), a joint venture between Libya and Tunisia, has announced the opening of a new bid round on 7 September for development of the promising Zarat discovery and further exploration of the Joint Oil Block border acreage

Located in the prolific Gabes-Tripoli Basin of the central Mediterranean, this offshore acreage represents a premier opportunity for cross-border energy cooperation between Tunisia and Libya. Moyes & Co., a global upstream advisory firm, has been engaged to seek industry partners for two separate commercial packages:

• Exploration: Further exploration of the Joint Oil Block for new plays, leads, and prospects under an Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement (EPSA). The area concerned spans 3,000 sq km in water depth of 80-120m, with seismic data covering 6,500km of 2D & 1,900km of 3D. Wells: Zohra-1 (1976), El Amal South 1 (1999), Besmah-1 (2002), El Amal North 1 (2002), Zarat North 1 (2010). Surrounding producing fields: El Bouri, El Jurf and Bihr El Salam in Libya; Hasdrubal, Ashtart, Miskar & Didon in Tunisia.

• Development: Development of the Zarat Discovery — which straddles the Tunisia-Libya border— as a unitised oil and gas resource. This will be governed by a Development and Production Sharing Agreement (DPSA), Unitisation Agreement (UA), Unit Operating Agreement (UOA), and Operating Services Contract (OSC).

The bid round will close on 31 December 2026.

Credible companies with proven offshore exploration and development capability are invited to apply for access to the Virtual Data Room (VDR) managed by Moyes. Bids must be received by 8 January 2027. Winning bidders will be informed by 26 February 2027, with formal awards expected by 30 April 2027.

The bid round opportunity will be presented at the London Mediterranean, Middle East & Africa Scout Group (MMEA) on 9 September 2026 and at the World Energy Summit in London on 29-30 September 2026 where Joint Oil will also be present at a booth.

Strong potential

Joint Oil has highlighted the exceptional potential of the Joint Oil Block and the Zarat Discovery, strategically positioned along the southern margin of the Pelagian Basin within the geological extension of the Sabratha–Gabes Basin. 

The concession benefits from a highly strategic offshore location near several major producing fields across the Sabratha–Gabes Basin, including Al Jurf, Bahr Essalam, and Bouri offshore Libya, as well as Ashtart, Didon, and Miskar offshore Tunisia. This positioning enhances the project’s long-term value proposition through access to established regional infrastructure, operational synergies, and export pathways.

Bordered by active Libyan exploration zones and major offshore concessions, the Joint Oil Block and Zarat discovery further underscore the substantial untapped hydrocarbon potential of the shared Tunisian-Libyan offshore basin, reinforcing its attractiveness as a high-impact exploration and development opportunity for investors and strategic partners. Zarat is the largest discovery in offshore Tunisia since the Miskar discovery in 1975, and is the largest undeveloped field in offshore Tunisia. Contingent resources at Zarat attributable to the Joint Oil Block totals 158 mmboe.

Joint Oil is a joint venture between Libya and Tunisia through the national companies, the Tunisian Corporation of Petroleum Activities (ETAP) and Ola Energy Holdings Ltd. (OLA Energy). The company has managed hydrocarbon resources within the Tunisia-Libyan offshore acreage since 1988.

Oil and gas industry network Subsea Wireless Group (SWiG) has released a new industry specification for free-space optical communications, providing a common protocol for modems from different manufacturers

SWiGoptical Level 1 defines a simple protocol to satisfy interoperability and interchangeability requirements for subsea free-space optical communication devices. It supports applications including, but not limited to, process control, equipment and process monitoring, diagnostics and maintenance, and data exchange and harvesting across autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and other connected subsea systems.

Systems working together

SWiG, a joint industry project (JIP) managed by OTM Networks (part of R&D consultancy Sagentia Innovation), was established to enable vehicles, infrastructure and equipment from different suppliers to work together seamlessly. It has 27 members representing all parts of the supply chain, from major energy operators to subsea service providers and integrators to specialist instrumentation companies. Its objectives include:

• Promote interoperability between users of subsea wireless communications.
• Raise industry awareness and acceptance of subsea wireless communications.
• Identify areas (within subsea wireless communications) where open standards are needed, and develop them.
• Encourage the integration of subsea wireless communication technologies.
• Share best practices across the industry.
• Promote knowledge transfer across the industry.

Shreekant Mehta, senior vice president, Energy Sector at Sagentia Innovation, said SWiGoptical Level 1 represents an important step towards optical modem interoperability for subsea systems.

“SWiG’s goal is to create a common subsea ecosystem where devices from different manufacturers interact seamlessly,” Mehta explained. “As subsea communication technologies continue to mature, a collaborative approach to developing open standards supports cost management and provides a common framework, reducing deployment risk, simplifying integration and supporting scalability. Achieving interoperability across subsea operations is essential if the industry is to realise the full benefits of autonomy.”

The new specification builds on the earlier SWiGacoustic standard and is the latest in a family of complementary SWiG standards that also cover radio frequency (RF), inductive data and power and hybrid communications. SWiGoptical Level 1 is now available to the wider industry, with Level 2 and Level 3 specifications for higher-performance protocols already under development.

At the S&P Global Energy Middle East Petroleum & Gas Conference (MPGC) held in London, Musaab Al Mulla, Aramco's vice president of market analysis and sustainability, underlined the need for the recognition of the role refined products play in resilient energy systems, which has been brought into sharp focus in the current crisis

Al Mulla highlighted the need for a realistic approach to the role of oil and gas as the engine for economic growth and the impact of the crisis on products ranging from helium to materials and fertilisers, with shortages of the latter in turn impacting food supply.

A common theme of the event was the need for resilience and redundancy in the energy system to be able to weather such crises. Al Mulla highlighted Aramco’s focus on long-term strategic planning and investment for the future, as exemplified by its investment in the east-west pipeline which is now not only transporting crude but also products, building flexibility into the system, transporting crude to refineries for export and ensuring refined products get to market.

“The world has realised the need for more investment in pipeline infrastructure and domestic refining to ensure industry is working together,” he said.

He remarked that the crisis has demonstrated demand is resilient and has exposed the underinvestment in refineries, with capital flows being redirected towards the energy transition and resulting in a deficit of 3mn bpd.

“We need to build refineries and infrastructure while also reducing emissions,” he said, noting that Aramco has one of the lowest emissions intensities.

Discussing demand for refined products, he noted that demand for jet fuel continues to grow and refinery utilisation is at record rates.

“We believe demand will continue to be resilient, and low carbon products will be important as well,” he said.

He foresaw strong growth in chemicals with the market for durable materials growing in multiple sectors, noting that carbon-based materials can help reduce emissions. Replacing steel with polypropylene in cars can reduce emissions by 80%, for example. He also highlighted growth in demand for low carbon aviation fuel (lcaf), fossil-based jet fuel, which is 10% lower in emissions than conventional jet fuel, and complements sustainable aviation fuel (saf) as it addresses some of its limitations.

Highlighting the continuing long-term strategic importance of refining, he stressed that gasolene will still account for a significant proportion of transportation fuel by 2050.

With resilience, reliability and sustainability being global challenges, Al Mulla said that resilience for Aramco means building on operational excellence, long-term investment in oil and gas, new energies and low carbon, and localisation, noting Aramco’s 70% localisation target to ensure a resilient supply chain.

“Resilience is correlated with sustainability, you can’t be sustainable if you are not resilient,” he said. It involves not only having the flexibility to be able to adapt to shocks, but also having the capacity to innovate and grow supply while also reducing emissions, he added.

Commenting on the Middle East’s attractiveness as an investment destination, he said, “Clearly the region remains the hub for oil and gas petrochemicals and refining, and it has shown its infrastructure and energy system have been resilient in this historic crisis.”

He said Aramco is also looking at other regions, and urged the need for more investor-friendly policies in Europe, where there is a need for more domestic refining and chemicals so as not to be dependent on other regions.

Discussing the role of gas, Al Mulla said there will be increasing demand to fulfil the growing demand for power from data centres, highlighting the move towards regional data centres.

Wassim Ghadban, global SVP, AI & Digital Engineering at Kent, discusses the concept of autonomous AI-driven review, combined with human-in-the-loop validation, as a means to remove structural bottlenecks in project delivery, and how the convergence of AI capabilities across engineering and operations can enable earlier production, reduce capital inefficiencies, and redefine how projects are executed

In the delivery of energy projects, the industry has long focused on optimising engineering productivity, refining project controls, and improving procurement and construction strategies. Despite these efforts, delays remain a persistent challenge. These delays are often attributed to complexity, uncertainty, or resource constraints. However, a closer examination reveals that the underlying issue is more structural in nature.

Engineering outputs are developed rapidly, supported by sophisticated tools and experienced teams. Yet, the progression of these outputs through the project lifecycle is governed by validation processes that are inherently sequential and fragmented. Documents and models move through multiple layers of review, often across different disciplines, organisations, and geographies. Each step introduces latency, not necessarily because of the effort required, but because of coordination, alignment, and the need to reconcile inconsistencies.

In this context, the constraint is not the ability to produce engineering work, but the ability to validate and integrate it efficiently.

The nature of the bottleneck

As projects evolve from conceptual design to detailed engineering and construction, the volume and granularity of deliverables increase significantly. This expansion is accompanied by a corresponding increase in interfaces between disciplines. Mechanical systems must align with structural supports, electrical systems must integrate with control architectures, and all must comply with operational and safety requirements.

Traditional review processes address this complexity through iterative, discipline-specific validation. While effective in ensuring technical integrity, these processes are limited in their ability to scale. Reviews are conducted sequentially or in loosely coordinated parallel streams, and issues identified at later stages often require revisiting earlier decisions. The result is a cycle of iteration that extends project timelines and introduces inefficiencies.

This dynamic is further compounded by the fact that review cycles are not purely technical activities. They involve communication, coordination, and decision-making across multiple stakeholders. As such, the duration of a review cycle is often driven more by process than by technical effort.

The emergence of AI in engineering contexts

Advances in AI have reached a level of maturity that allows systems to interpret, analyse, and generate engineering content with increasing accuracy. AI models can process structured and unstructured data, identify relationships between elements, and detect patterns that may not be immediately visible to human reviewers.

In practical terms, AI can now extract information from engineering documents, generate drawings based on defined parameters, and evaluate the consistency of designs across multiple domains. It can compare specifications against standards, identify deviations, and highlight potential conflicts between systems.

These capabilities extend beyond isolated tasks. AI can operate across interconnected datasets, enabling a more integrated view of engineering systems. This creates the foundation for a new approach to validation, one that is not constrained by discipline boundaries or sequential workflows.

Autonomous review with human-in-the-loop validation

The concept of autonomous AI review builds on these capabilities by applying them to the validation process itself. Rather than relying on multiple rounds of manual review, AI systems can evaluate entire engineering packages in a single pass, checking for completeness, compliance, and cross-discipline consistency.

Crucially, this approach does not eliminate the role of the engineer. Instead, it redefines it. Engineers remain responsible for final validation and decision-making, but their role shifts from conducting detailed manual reviews to assessing and confirming the outputs generated by AI. This human-in-the-loop model ensures that accountability and professional judgment are preserved, while significantly reducing the time required for validation.

The impact of this shift is not limited to efficiency. By enabling rapid, comprehensive review, it reduces the likelihood of late-stage issue discovery. Inconsistencies and conflicts can be identified earlier, when they are less costly and easier to resolve.

Implications for project execution

The introduction of autonomous review has broader implications for how projects are executed. By reducing the duration and frequency of review cycles, it allows engineering activities to progress more continuously. Dependencies between disciplines become less restrictive, as validation can occur in parallel rather than in sequence.

This creates the conditions for a more dynamic and responsive execution model. Decisions can be made earlier, with greater confidence, and adjustments can be implemented without significant disruption.

The traditional concept of rigid stage gates begins to give way to a more fluid process, in which validation is embedded within the workflow rather than applied after the fact.
The cumulative effect is a compression of the project timeline. Engineering completion is achieved sooner, procurement can be initiated earlier, and construction activities can proceed with fewer interruptions.

Enabling earlier production

For owner-operators, the most significant consequence of this transformation is the potential to achieve first production earlier than originally planned. The value of this acceleration extends beyond cost savings. It directly impacts revenue generation and the overall economic performance of the asset.

By reducing delays in engineering and execution, autonomous review contributes to a more predictable and shorter path to operational readiness. This not only improves capital efficiency but also enhances the strategic flexibility of operators, allowing them to respond more effectively to market conditions.

In this sense, the primary value of AI in project delivery is not merely in reducing costs, but in unlocking time. Time, in turn, is directly linked to value creation in the form of earlier production and extended asset utilisation.

Extending AI into operations

The same principles that enable autonomous review can be extended into the operational phase. AI systems are increasingly capable of monitoring plant conditions, interpreting sensor data, and applying predefined operational philosophies to optimise performance.

In environments where safety, efficiency, and reliability are critical, AI can support or even execute operational decisions within defined boundaries. This reduces the reliance on manual intervention and enhances the consistency of operations.

In certain scenarios, AI can effectively operate a plant by following established control strategies and responding to real-time conditions. While human oversight remains essential, the role of operators evolves toward supervision and exception management.

Conclusion

Autonomous AI review, combined with human-in-the-loop validation, offers a practical pathway to addressing one of the most persistent challenges in project delivery. By transforming how engineering outputs are validated and integrated, it removes a key constraint that has historically limited project performance.

The resulting benefits extend beyond efficiency gains. They include earlier production, improved capital utilisation, and a more responsive and resilient execution model. When combined with AI-enabled operations, this approach forms the foundation of a new paradigm in which projects are not only digitally enabled but increasingly autonomous.

The future of project delivery will not be defined by how quickly engineering work can be produced, but by how effectively it can be validated, integrated, and executed. In this context, AI is not simply a tool for optimisation, but a catalyst for fundamental change.

Oil Review Middle East, in association with Flyability is hosting a webinar on “NDT drones for the oil and gas industry: from innovation to implementation" on Tuesday 14 July at 2pm GST

The oil and gas industry continues to face increasing pressure to improve safety, reduce operational downtime and enhance inspection efficiency. Increasingly, operators are deploying drone technology to improve inspection quality, enhance safety and drive greater operational efficiency across oil and gas assets, discovering new ways to conduct inspections in hazardous and confined spaces while minimising risks to personnel.

This practical session will explore how drone technology is being used to perform remote NDT inspections, collect critical asset data and create digital twins that support more effective asset integrity management. Through real-world case studies and industry experience, attendees will gain valuable insights into implementing drone solutions within their own operations.

Register here

Key highlights

• Visual inspections: Learn how drone technology is improving access to difficult and hazardous inspection environments
• Remote NDT applications: Explore the use of UT spot measurements and other remote inspection capabilities
• Digital twins: Understand how digital asset models are supporting integrity monitoring and maintenance planning
• Industry success stories: Hear practical examples from asset owners and service providers successfully utilising drone technology
• Implementation strategies: Gain insights into integrating drone-based inspections into existing operational workflows.

Our expert speakers:

• Fabio Fata, senior sales manager, Flyability
• Senan Khatib, certified AUV pilot/instructor and UAV field specialist Sagerdrone
• Abdullah Al-Rahmah, head of UAV team, Saudi Aramco
• Jacob Swidy, head of inspection technology and digital transformation, Saudi Aramco

Don’t miss this opportunity to take away exclusive insights from the leading lights of the drone technology world!
Register here

Abu Dhabi is forging ahead with hydrogen development and is emerging as one of the world’s leading global hydrogen hubs, according to a new report from the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI)

The report, entitled Abu Dhabi's Positioning in the Hydrogen Economy, highlights that Abu Dhabi is moving from ambition to concrete project execution through investment in production, infrastructure, manufacturing, logistics and export-oriented value chains, even as progress slows in other markets due to the reassessment of hydrogen ambitions and policy uncertainty.

Competitive advantage

The report finds that the UAE benefits from a unique combination of structural advantages, including:
• abundant solar resources
• efficient electricity infrastructure
• strong industrial capabilities
• low cost of capital, and
• strong project delivery capability.

These factors combine to make Abu Dhabi among the most competitive global hydrogen hubs globally, with the levelised costs of hydrogen and ammonia set to be one of the lowest in the world by 2030, strengthening its position as a key exporter to early demand centres such as the European Union, Japan and South Korea. 

Abu Dhabi has set a 2031 production target of 1.4 Mt/year of low-carbon hydrogen. This is in line with the UAE’s hydrogen strategy, which aims to enhance the UAE’s position as one of the largest producers of hydrogen by that year and envisages the low-carbon fuel as a crucial tool in meeting the country’s net-zero commitments and reducing emissions in hard-to-abate sectors.

Shift to high-value hydrogen derivatives

The report highlights a global strategic shift away from just exporting pure hydrogen toward higher-value derivatives such as green ammonia, methanol, synthetic fuels, and Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

Abu Dhabi is pursuing a number of initiatives in these areas such as
• Development of methanol and SAF projects using green hydrogen and captured CO₂
• Exploration of e-methane production and bunkering infrastructure
• Expansion into green ammonia and synthetic fuels.

These initiatives could result in exports worth millions of dirhams, as well as creating new jobs and contributing to emissions reduction, creating new opportunities across manufacturing, trade, logistics and industrial production.

Offtake agreements critical

The report stresses that long-term offtake agreements are critical to accelerate investment and scale the hydrogen economy. As a recent IEA report notes, demand uncertainty remains a key constraint for scaling up low-emissions hydrogen development, and is cited by developers as one of the largest barriers to investment. Despite strong global momentum, the report notes that only around 12% of low-carbon hydrogen projects have secured confirmed customers.

Addressing these considerations, Abu Dhabi is demonstrating a viable delivery model through customer-aligned projects and partnerships:
• The EMSTEEL–Masdar green steel pilot (MENA’s first hydrogen-based steel project) is already operational
• Offtake agreements have been signed with Modon and Aldar to supply green steel to sustainable construction projects.

Equipment and technology offer opportunities

As well as production and derivatives, the report identifies opportunities in exporting hydrogen-related technologies and equipment to global projects, such as electrolysers, port infrastructure components and blending projects. Abu Dhabi's industrial zones — including KEZAD— and logistics infrastructure at Khalifa Port position the emirate as a manufacturing and re-export hub to markets such as China, Germany, the United Kingdom, the USA, and Australia. In a regional first, ADNOC, John Cockerill Hydrogen, and Strata Manufacturing signed an agreement in 2023 to produce electrolysers in the UAE for domestic use and export. Other similar arrangements will surely follow.