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OMV has announced that its Essar well in Libya’s Sirte Basin is commercially viable, following the completion of technical and economic studies

The well is in the concession area C 103, where OMV holds a 12% interest.

Zueitina Oil Company will be responsible for developing the field, where studies indicate total recoverable resources of up to 43mn barrels of oil. Due to its proximity to existing production and processing facilities, the field can be developed quickly and brought on stream in a cost-efficient manner, OMV says.

OMV has a long history of exploration and production of oil and gas in North Africa, in close cooperation with local partners, and the region plays an important role in the company’s upstream growth strategy. Libya is a core focus, where the company has been active for around 50 years with a long-standing partnership with the NOC. At the end of 2024, the company resumed exploration activities in Libya after an interruption of more than ten years.

“The Essar discovery is a major milestone for OMV and our partners at the NOC. It confirms not only Libya’s considerable potential, but also the value of long-term partnerships, technical excellence, and our unwavering commitment on the ground. Strategic collaborations such as this are essential to providing the energy the world needs,” said Berislav Gašo, OMV executive vice president Energy.

Strong potential

The recent discovery is good news for Libya, and is a further indication of its energy potential. Libya holds Africa’s largest proven oil reserves and its fifth largest gas reserves. Libya’s oil production currently stands at around 1.4mn bpd, its highest level since 2013. Libya’s NOC is keen to revitalise the country’s oil and gas industry and aims to produce 1.6mn bpd by the end of 2026, rising to 2mn bpd in the medium term, seeing the participation of international companies as crucial to achieving its growth plans. Libya’s efforts to boost oil and gas production following years of civil war have met with considerable success. In recent developments, Eni, in partnership with the Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC) through the Mellitah Oil & Gas joint venture, has started hydrocarbon production enabled by the Sabratha Compression Project, a strategic offshore development designed to boost gas output from the Bahr Essalam gas field, located around 100 km off the coast.

NOC has signed production sharing agreements recently with Spain’s Repsol, in partnership with the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO); and Eni, in partnership with QatarEnergy and MOL Group, with its partners, Repsol and Türkiye Petrolleri A. O. (TPAO). Five blocks were recently awarded in Libya’s recent bid round, its first in eighteen years, which attracted significant international interest.

Global upstream mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity is set to exceed last year’s US$175 billion total, with nearly US$130 billion in transactions announced as of August 2026 and a further US$137 billion in the pipeline, according to Rystad Energy

However, oil-price volatility is widening valuation expectations and making deal execution increasingly difficult.

Atul Raina, VP, oil and gas M&A said, “Oil price volatility has created a deeper opportunity set, but it has also made deals harder to execute. Sellers are looking at elevated spot prices and near-term cash flow, while buyers are underwriting against a backwardated price strip and the possibility that current conditions may not last.

"The opportunity is clearly there, but pipeline value does not automatically translate into executable deal value. Timing, transaction structure, and the willingness to bridge valuation expectations will determine whether the remainder of 2026 produces a breakout or a growing backlog."

Global upstream M&A deal value increased 55% year on year to approximately US$100 billion during the first half of 2026, with North America accounting for more than US$68 billion, or 68%, of first-half global deal value. Shale transactions represented more than US$63 billion—equivalent to 92% of North American activity and 63% of global upstream M&A. Devon Energy’s US$25.1 billion merger with Coterra Energy and Shell’s US$16.4 billion acquisition of ARC Resources together accounted for 41% of global deal value.

Middle East conflict expands the pipeline but slows down execution

The conflict in the Middle East has had a significant impact on upstream M&A. Approximately US$56 billion, or 56%, of first-half deal value was announced before the conflict began on 28 February. A further US$44 billion was announced from March through June, despite Brent averaging approximately US$99 per barrel between March and July. This is the lowest average monthly deal value since 2016 (US$10.7 billion monthly average) and 2020 (US$8.6 billion monthly average) when Brent prices averaged around US$44 per barrel around $42 per barrel, respectively.

At the same time, high but volatile prices have encouraged several E&Ps, particularly privately owned E&Ps in the US shale, to test the market, increasing the global opportunity pipeline from approximately US$98 billion before the conflict to US$137 billion currently. This volatility in prices and uncertainty around a potential resolution to the conflict also brings risks around deal execution. Rystad Energy expects buyers and sellers to respond with greater use of contingent or deferred considerations, flexible effective dates and stronger termination protections as buyers and sellers seek to share commodity-price and closing risk.

International dealmaking becomes more selective

Outside North America, first-half deal value increased 7% year on year to more than US$32 billion. South America led international activity with approximately US$13 billion, supported by consolidation in Argentina’s Vaca Muerta. Africa also recorded stronger activity as majors returned as buyers of offshore exploration positions in Angola and Namibia.

International activity is expected to remain more selective despite nearly US$52 billion of opportunities on the market. Major-led divestments and farm-downs will likely dominate as companies recycle capital, share development expenditure and reduce portfolio concentration while retaining exposure to strategically important assets.

The global M&A market therefore has sufficient opportunity depth to produce another strong year. However, it hinges on whether buyers and sellers can structure transactions that accommodate a volatile oil-price outlook and increasingly complex geopolitical risks.

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.