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Hungary’s MOL Group has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) for cooperation in hydrocarbons exploration, technological innovation and crude trading, as international interest in Libya hots up

The strategic partnership agreement sets out the framework for NOC and MOL to exchange information and jointly explore potential areas of cooperation. These include hydrocarbon exploration and production, technological and field development innovations, oilfield services opportunities in Libya, crude supply and trading activities.

"We recognise Libya’s oil and gas industry as a pillar of strength and expertise. I am sure that this new agreement will act as a catalyst for further expanding our international portfolio, creating clear mutual value for both companies and reinforcing the resilience of our region. From the perspective of security of supply and energy sovereignty, particularly for landlocked countries, diversification of sources is of crucial importance. Our cooperation also goes beyond business, as we have agreed to rebuild our educational, scientific, and university ties in order to learn as much as possible from each other. Such partnerships can also help Europe to find its own path to competitiveness, rather than switching between different forms of energy dependency,” – said Zsolt Hernádi, chairman and CEO of the MOL Group.

The agreement comes as MOL is looking to expand its international portfolio to maintain its strategy target of at least 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent/day production level over the next five years, recently signing cooperation agreements with the national oil company of Kazakhstan (KazMunayGas), the national oil company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), and the national oil company of Türkiye (Turkish Petroleum). The company has oil and gas exploration and production assets in nine countries, with production in eight countries: in Croatia, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Russia, Pakistan, Egypt, and Hungary.

The agreement also reflects the hotting up of international interest in Libya. Chevron recently signed an MoU with NOC to evaluate exploration and development opportunities, while TotalEnergies has signed an agreement extending the Libya Waha Concessions up to 2050, paving the way for further investments. TGS has a global provider of energy data and intelligence, has just signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with North Africa Geophysical Company, (NAGECO),a subsidiary of the NOC to advance high-quality subsurface data, supporting Libya’s upstream development through modern, fit-for-purpose data and technology solutions. Libya’s latest upstream licensing round launched in March 2025, the first in 18 years, has attracted more than 40 bids, signalling growing international interest in Libya’s largely untapped hydrocarbon potential.

ADNOC companies have announced strong 2025 results, reflecting growth across the value chain from upstream development to logistics and distribution, as well as international expansion, capital discipline and the harnessing of new technologies

ADNOC Drilling recorded the strongest performance in its history, reflecting continued growth across integrated drilling and oilfield services (“OFS”), and driven by sustained rig utilisation, strong operational execution across the fleet, resilient long-term contracts and accelerated adoption of AI-powered technologies. Revenue was up 22% to US$$4.9bn year on year, with net profit up 11% to US$1.45bn.

Oilfield Services (OFS) revenues grew particularly strongly, by 80%, to US$1.46bn, on the back of increased activity volume, driven by higher IDS activity and additional discrete services, coupled with the growing year-on-year contribution from unconventional business. OFS is a core pillar of the company’s growth strategy, with the UAE and wider GCC representing some of the most attractive and strategically important markets for integrated energy services.

Abdulla Ateya Al Messabi, ADNOC Drilling CEO said, “2025 was a defining year for ADNOC Drilling. Our record-breaking results were delivered by our people, whose discipline, innovation and commitment to operational excellence and safety underpin every milestone we achieve. Our resilience as a business, built on strong systems, disciplined operations and the ability to adapt at pace, continues to reinforce our competitive strength.

“Through execution excellence, technology led efficiency and a disciplined approach to capital allocation and operations, we continue our transformation into the region’s most advanced energy services company. By expanding across the GCC, pioneering AI driven operations and setting new benchmarks in sustainability, we are unlocking value and helping power the UAE’s energy future. This is just the beginning of a new era of growth, innovation and impact.”

The company comments that the forward outlook remains strong, with growth in 2026 expected to be driven by accelerated IDS deployment, incremental OFS scope awards, and continued AI-driven efficiency gains, as well as further progress in ADNOC’s long-term upstream and unconventional development plans. Sustained development in both unconventional and conventional drilling is expected, the latter including six new island rigs scheduled for delivery between 2026 and 2028. This is complemented by ongoing expansion in OFS and attractive regional growth avenues. ADNOC Drilling aims to deploy approximately 70 IDS rigs by the end of 2026, reinforcing its operational scale and future OFS earnings visibility.

ADNOC Gas meanwhile recorded income of US$5.2bn, a 3% increase compared to 2024, despite a 14% drop in the oil price. This was primarily driven by the strength of its domestic gas business where its EBITDA was up 10% on sales volume growth of 4% year-on-year (YoY) and improved commercial terms.

Capital expenditure at US$3.6bn increased by a staggering 98% in 2025 as several major projects progressed. These included phase one of the RGD project, which expands domestic gas processing capacity and increases production of export-traded liquids from new, richer gas supplies. Work is also advancing on the ADNOC Estidama gas-pipeline project, which aims to enhance access for industrial and utility customers in the Northern Emirates.

Looking ahead, ADNOC Gas expects to capture continued domestic demand growth beyond 2026, supported by strategic infrastructure investments, including the ADNOC Estidama gas pipeline project, which will expand access to the Northern Emirates and reinforce the UAE’s long term objective of achieving gas self sufficiency. The Final Investment Decision (FID) for phases two and three of the Rich Gas Development (RGD) project is anticipated in the first quarter of 2026. This expansion, benefiting from the growth of ADNOC’s upstream operations, is one of the critical projects to enable ADNOC Gas by 2029 to expand its overall capacity by 30%.

Fatema Al Nuaimi, chief executive officer of ADNOC Gas, said, “2025 was a defining year for ADNOC Gas. We delivered record earnings while investing in growth, demonstrating that our business is resilient, scalable, and globally relevant. As demand for reliable delivery of gas continues to expand, ADNOC Gas is strategically positioned to serve both the UAE and international markets with confidence and discipline.”

ADNOC Logistics & Services saw revenues rise 41% YoY to US$5,016mn and net profit up 14% YoY to US$863mn, driven by favourable market demand, strong operational execution and the continued expansion across the company’s core and growth segments.

Integrated Logistics, the largest segment within ADNOC L&S saw revenues rising 11% YoY to US$2,529mn, driven by robust market demand and sustained momentum across key business lines. The shipping sector, despite challenging market conditions, saw revenue increase by 122% to US$2,125mn, reflecting the successful integration of Navig8, followed by the rapid integration of its 32 vessel fleet and the adoption of advanced commercial and digital capabilities. The acquisition of Navig8 added commercial scale, strengthened ADNOC L&S’ revenue profile, and improved access to global energy and commodities flows.

Captain Abdulkareem Al Masabi, CEO of ADNOC L&S, said, “2025 was a pivotal year for ADNOC L&S. We further enhanced our customer centricity, achieved record financial results and created significant value for our shareholders. ADNOC L&S grew across all segments, diversified into new verticals and accelerated its international expansion. With the acquisition of Navig8, we elevated ADNOC L&S from a regional powerhouse to global sector leadership.”

ADNOC Distribution also put in a strong performance in 2025.

Aramco, Honeywell and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) are collaborating to scale up the development of Crude-to-Chemicals (CTC) technology in a bid to maximise the value of crude oil and reduce costs associated with CTC conversion 

The new CTC pathway will entail converting crude oil directly into light olefins and other high-demand chemicals, resulting in improved fuel efficiency, carbon utilisation, and process economics—allowing for more efficient and cost-effective production at scale.

The collaboration aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 by helping to advance economic diversification, build national research and technology capabilities, and strengthen the Kingdom’s position in the global chemicals market, combining academia and industry expertise to accelerate technology development and national capabilities.

Dr. Ali A. Al-Meshari, Aramco senior vice president of technology oversight & coordination, said, “This collaboration with Honeywell UOP and KAUST furthers Aramco's efforts to drive innovation and shape the future of petrochemicals. By harnessing the power of cutting-edge technologies, we aim to enhance energy efficiency and unlock increased value from every barrel of crude. This novel Crude-to-Chemicals process is aligned with our vision of supporting the global transition towards cleaner, high-performance chemical production. Moreover, this initiative demonstrates our focus on contributing to the growth of a vibrant ecosystem, where the deployment of innovative technologies can create lasting value for our stakeholders, our communities, and the environment.”

Rajesh Gattupalli, Honeywell UOP president, added, “This agreement marks a defining moment in our strategic collaboration with Aramco and KAUST – and in the global evolution of Crude-to-Chemicals technology. With Honeywell UOP’s deep expertise in catalytic process design and commercial scale-up, we’re well positioned to drive this innovation forward.”

Sean Donegan, CEO, Satelytics discusses the potential of AI-powered geospatial analytics to detect pipeline leaks

The importance of the Middle East to the global energy market is well-understood but worth emphasising. Between 2024 and 2025, roughly a third of the world's oil flowed from the region. With domestic and international demand continuing to soar, it is clear that both the past and the future of global oil and gas run directly through the Middle East.

At the same time, the Middle East, in ramping up its oil production, is increasingly running up against a problem endemic to all oil-producing regions: the fallibility of ageing or otherwise defective pipeline infrastructure, and the subsequent damage caused by leaks. These leaks cause significant environmental damage, divert limited resources to remediation efforts, and put oil and gas personnel, as well as (in some cases) surrounding residents, at risk.

Any increase in oil production would entail a concomitant increase in dangerous leaks. But as recent technological advancements have demonstrated, this doesn't have to be the case. In recent years, AI-powered geospatial analytics has emerged as a highly effective method of leak detection – one that is already sparing oil and gas producers from catastrophe in the Middle East and around the globe.

What is geospatial analytics? How does AI fit in?

Geospatial analytics is the analysis of satellite imagery, and is fundamentally, a high-tech method of identifying problem points across unusually vast swathes of terrain. It begins with multispectral and hyperspectral imagery, which is gathered from a variety of sources, including unmanned aerial vehicles, planes, and fixed cameras. This imagery is then analysed by advanced artificial intelligence, which pinpoints precisely where leaks are occurring, near-instantly alerting businesses to potential issues.

The sheer scale of most oil and gas assets, more sprawling by far than those found in any other industry, helps explain why this technology is so useful. Take the example of Aramco, which is responsible for 3,140 miles of crude oil pipelines, according to the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries. In any region, this degree of sprawl would be impossible to oversee by manual means. But the nature of the terrain involved makes the problem even more vexing. Aramco's Petroline, for instance, runs through the Empty Quarter, or the Rub' al-Khali, which is the largest continuous sand desert in the world. This challenging terrain has no permanent settlements, which means that when leaks do occur, days or weeks can pass before they're properly noticed.

The use of geospatial analytics, by contrast, ensures that these leaks are flagged in close to real-time, with an abundance of information for businesses to act on – including the specific problem, the location, and the magnitude of the disruption. This allows oil and gas producers to delegate relevant remediation personnel to take care of the issue before it spirals out of control.

Today, the technology is able to assist oil and gas producers in the US and Europe through the use of AI-powered geospatial analytics, and the technology is also being deployed to the Middle East as part of a broader global rollout.

US initiatives

North Dakota has a long history of pipeline leaks, which in 2017 compelled Governor Doug Burgum to take substantial measures to address the problem. The Intelligent Pipeline Integrity Program (iPIPE), as it was called, was launched with the aim of creating a fruitful partnership between government and industry on the pipeline problem. Through geospatial analytics, leak reports were delivered to consortium makers within hours of capture, showing results including the location and magnitude of liquid leaks.

The result was a significant reduction in pipeline leaks in the area. This reduction so impressed one of iPIPE's founding members that Satelytics was contracted to monitor their entire fleet of assets in the region, spread across nearly 10,000 sq.km. This effort, too, identified countless leaks in their infancy and spared the oil company from a number of potential disasters.

These successes piqued the interest of producers in Texas and led directly to a new initiative in the region: an unprecedented, industry-led collaboration designed to monitor infrastructure throughout the Permian Basin for liquid leaks, methane leaks, encroachment, and similar risks.

Geospatial analytics in the Middle East

From these origins, Satelytics has since scaled globally. Beyond our operations in Europe, we are now monitoring pipelines for a wide range of Middle Eastern companies, including operators in the UAE, Iraq and Qatar. These efforts have already helped to detect numerous leaks, in addition to flagging potential land encroachments and even testing water quality.

Conclusion

The environmental benefits of AI-powered geospatial analytics in an oil and gas context are indisputable: major players across the industry agree that it has a significant role to play in reducing emissions and forestalling negative climate events down the line. But its present-day benefits are just as striking, which explains why oil and gas companies across the world – from the Permian Basin to the Rub' al-Khali – have rushed to integrate the technology.

Satelytics uses cloud-based, geospatial analytics to analyse multispectral and hyperspectral imagery to identify pipeline leaks and other environmental issues.

Despite advances in digital technology, many oil and gas sites across the Middle East still rely on manual entry for tank and vessel inspections, resulting in days of downtime, high scaffolding costs and risk to human life

What if you could change all that with drone technology?

Inspections drones such as the Elios 3 are revolutionising the world of confined space inspections, improving safety, reducing downtime and enhancing operational efficiency.

Join us for an exclusive live webinar hosted by Flyability in association with Oil Review Middle East on ‘Transforming oil and gas operations with the Elios 3 drone’ on Tuesday 2 September at 2pm GST. Industrial experts will explain how drones such as the Elios 3 are transforming confined space inspections, and how you can integrate this technology into your operations seamlessly.

Key highlights:

Drone integration: learn how to safety and effectively implement drones in confined space
Safety and training: understand essential safety protocols and training strategies for your team
ROI: discover how to measure and achieve a strong return on investment with drone technology
Real world use cases: hear from the engineers using drone tech in the field on the impact Elios 3 is having on in oil and gas inspections.

Speakers and host:

Fabio Fata – senior sales manager, Flyability (moderator)
Eralp Koltuk – inspection lead engineer, Tüpraş
Danijel Jovanovic – director of operations, ZainTECH

Take your operations to the next level! Don’t miss out on gaining valuable insights into how drones can make inspections safer, faster and smarter .

From making inspections in hazardous confined spaces much safer to streamlining the whole process and providing valuable real-time data, you will get to see exactly how the Elios 3 is changing the game.

Coinciding with COP30, significant progress has been reported in driving forward the aims of the Oil & Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC) launched at COP28

The Oil & Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC), a global coalition of leading energy companies championed by the CEOs of ADNOC, Aramco, and TotalEnergies and supported by the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI), highlights expanded reporting coverage, strengthened action plans for emissions reduction and enhanced collaboration to accelerate industry decarbonisation in its 2025 Status Report: Implementing Action.

The Charter now brings together 55 signatories operating across more than 100 countries, representing around 40% of global oil production. Signatories invested approximately US$32bn in low-carbon solutions including renewables, carbon capture, hydrogen and low-carbon fuels in 2024.

This year, for the first time, the companies shared emissions data based on the OGCI Reporting Framework, laying the foundation for consistent reporting across 55 companies. 50 of the 55 signatories submitted data for this year’s report, covering 98% of OGDC operated production, most of which has received third-party assurance.

Forty-two signatories have now set interim Scope 1 and 2 emissions reductions ambitions for 2030, and 36 have developed corresponding action plans, reflecting tangible progress since the Charter’s 2024 Baseline Report, with six more companies sharing interim ambitions and seven more developing corresponding action plans on methane and flaring.

Extensive collaboration programme

An extensive collaboration programme is underway, with a focus on methane, flaring and reporting. TotalEnergies for example is sharing its AUSEA technology with several national oil companies to strengthen methane detection and measurement. Peer-to-peer exchanges, regional partnerships and technical workshops have strengthened capacities, while engagement with OGCI, the United Nations Environment Programme, the World Bank and many others, are helping scale practical solutions. At the company level, OGDC is helping to embed tailored, industry-specific training programmes.

Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, managing director, Group CEO of ADNOC, COP28 president and OGDC CEO Champion, said, “Two years ago, at COP28 we came together to create the world’s first truly industry-wide coalition to decarbonise at scale. Together, we are turning the Charter’s words into action by delivering tangible progress, scaling innovation and reporting transparently against our shared commitments.”

Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies and OGDC CEO Champion, added, “OGDC is about action and collective delivery. This year we moved from baseline to implementation, with almost all signatories reporting data that covers 98% of operated production and more companies setting 2030 targets backed by plans. This reflects that progress starts with what we measure and a shared reality that this is a journey where we advance faster together. Our focus now is clear. We must cut methane, end routine flaring and report progress consistently. We invite all IOCs and NOCs to join and show measurable results by the next COP.”

Bjørn Otto Sverdrup, head of the OGDC Secretariat, said, “With OGDC, we have established a platform for companies willing to take action and collaborate across North, South, East, West, to share best practices and accelerate decarbonisation – particularly towards reducing methane and zero flaring by 2030.”

“We are encouraged by the progress made, and we look forward to the work ahead.”

At COP30, TotalEnergies announced a US$100mn commitment to Climate Investments Venture Strategy funds, which supports technologies that cut emissions across the oil and gas value chain. Climate Investments (CI) is an OGDC Partner.