In The Spotlight
The workshop will show how Flyability's Elios 3 is transforming the way challenging inspections are approached.
A bespoke hands-on workshop is being held on 16 September in Dubai on Transforming oil and gas inspections with Elios 3, which will show how Flyability's Elios 3 is transforming the way challenging inspections are approached
The oil and gas industry continues to face increasing pressure to improve safety, reduce operational downtime and enhance inspection efficiency. Increasingly, operators are deploying UAV technology to improve inspection quality, enhance safety and drive greater operational efficiency across oil and gas assets.
This workshop will showcase how Flyability’s Elios 3 is being used to inspect confined spaces, navigate difficult environments and capture detailed visual data, while reducing the need for personnel exposure in potentially hazardous environments.
Expert speakers:
Alex Clark, group chief commercial officer, director Interocean Marine Services;
Capt. Ankur Arora, head of commercial and global market expert, Bureau Veritas Marine & offshore,
Fabio Fata, senior sales manager Flyability and
Senan Khatib, certified UAV pilot/instructor and UAV field specialist, Sagerdrone.
Find out about:
• Flyability’s vision and mission
• The latest trends in industrial inspections
• The importance of safety in confined space inspections
• Enhancing asset integrity with drone technology
• How operators are deploying Elios 3 across asset integrity and inspection workflows for safer, faster, more efficient and more data-driven inspections
Practical insights:
Get practical insights into the technology and its potential across oil & gas inspection operations, watch the live demonstration of the Elios 3 and take part in the hands-on session.
Don’t miss this opportunity to take away expert insights to help you transform your oil and gas inspections!
Register for the workshop here:
SLB has launched the ExaCT electrical downhole coiled tubing (CT) control system, an advanced intervention platform that introduces real-time electrical control to coiled tubing operations
By replacing pressure-dependent hydraulic actuation with electrical communication, power delivery and telemetry, the ExaCT system gives operators greater visibility, precision and control, helping improve intervention execution and reservoir access.
Complex demands
Well intervention is becoming more complex as reservoirs mature and well designs evolve. Extended-reach wells, multilaterals, and integrated operations demand more accuracy than traditional methods can deliver. Pressure-based actuation and mechanical sequencing often introduce uncertainty — making it harder to execute tasks at the right depth and time.
Without real-time visibility and control, operations become less efficient and more prone to NPT and missed objectives. Conventional approaches often require multiple runs and manual adjustments, increasing risk, cost, and variability — and limiting the ability to complete complex interventions in a single trip.
As the industry focuses on efficiency, repeatability, and performance certainty, precision and control are now essential. Real-time measurement, command, and actuation reduce uncertainty and help ensure every intervention achieves its full potential.
Precision and control
The ExaCT electrical downhole CT control system combines electrical power, telemetry and downhole measurements to deliver real-time precision, actuation and control for complex CT interventions. By replacing passive, pressure-dependent hydraulic actuation with active real-time electrical control the system helps operators to make informed decisions supported by continuous downhole feedback, emablong them to optimise reservoir access, improve production performance and maximise recovery.
The ExaCT system supports multiple services in a single run, including logging, stimulation, isolation and shifting operations – critical for extended-reach, multilateral and high-complexity wells. The platform enables real-time monitoring of downhole conditions and allows interventions to be adapted as conditions change, reducing the need for multiple runs while providing a foundation for increasingly automated intervention workflows.
Designed for harsh downhole conditions, including sour corrosive and high temperature environments, such as those in the Middle East, the ExaCT system improves execution confidence, reduces NPT and delivers more predictable outcomes through standardised, repeatable push-button workflows.
Results:
Field deployments of the ExaCT system across multilateral, extended-reach, and offshore intervention programmes have delivered measurable gains in execution time, cost, and reliability compared with conventional hydraulic systems:
• 30–40% faster intervention - The direction and inclination (D&I) and electrical multilateral module (eMLT) within the ExaCT access service completed multilateral entry and stimulation operations 30–40% faster than conventional methods.
• 15–20% lower operational costs - Electrical control within the ExaCT access service reduced repeat CT trips, lowering operational costs by 15–20% across field deployments.
• 30% faster offshore cleanout - Aker BP reduced offshore cleanout time by about 30%, or approximately 12 hours, using the ExaCT cleanout service in a depleted well offshore Norway.
• 20% less liquid and nitrogen use - Real-time mode switching with the ExaCT cleanout service reduced liquid and nitrogen consumption by about 20% compared with fixed, depth-based programs.
In one six-lateral well intervention, the ExaCT system reduced intervention time by approximately 175 hours, enabling operators to enter each lateral in about 12 minutes compared with six to eight hours using conventional hydraulic systems. The operation stimulated more than 21,000 feet of reservoir contact while reducing fluid consumption by more than 3,000 barrels.
“Operators are asking intervention systems to do far more than simply actuate downhole tools," said Frederik Majkut, president, Reservoir Performance, SLB. "Completion and production teams need continuous visibility, precise control and the flexibility to perform multiple services in a single run. The ExaCT system represents a fundamental shift to electrically controlled intervention, helping operators improve execution certainty, reduce intervention time and maximise reservoir access.”
Dr Manar Al Moneef
Dr. Manar Al Moneef, scientist, capital architect and chief investment officer of NEOM shares learnings from twenty years of infrastructure investment in the Gulf
There is a common misconception about what makes large-scale infrastructure successful. Many assume success is determined when a project is announced, the business case is approved, or the financing is secured. In reality, the true test comes much later.
Every transformational project reaches moments when assumptions evolve, technologies advance, markets shift, and geopolitical realities change. The question is never whether circumstances will change — they always do. The question is whether the institution behind the project has the capability, discipline, and conviction to adapt while remaining committed to its long-term objective.
After more than twenty years working across infrastructure, energy, healthcare, investment, and economic development, I have come to believe that the greatest determinant of success is not the original forecast, the technology, or even the market opportunity. It is the strength of the institution behind the capital.
Projects that create lasting economic value rarely unfold exactly as planned. They succeed because they are supported by institutions capable of learning, adjusting, and continuing to execute without losing sight of their strategic destination.
That distinction matters because the Gulf’s development story is often misunderstood.
The region’s greatest achievement is not that it has launched ambitious projects. Many countries can do that. Its real achievement is building institutions capable of sustaining long-term ambition through economic cycles, technological transformation, and periods of global uncertainty.
The institutions behind long-term success
Much of the discussion around sovereign investment focuses on scale. While the Gulf’s sovereign institutions collectively manage trillions of dollars, scale alone does not explain the region’s ability to deliver transformational infrastructure. What differentiates successful institutions is their ability to think beyond market cycles while continuously creating long-term value. In my experience, three characteristics consistently distinguish institutions that endure:
Strategic clarity. Successful institutions maintain a clear long-term direction while remaining flexible in execution. Markets evolve, technologies improve, and priorities shift, but adapting the route does not require abandoning the destination.
Adaptive execution. Every major project evolves. New information emerges, better solutions become available, and economic conditions change. Strong institutions embrace these changes, improving execution without compromising strategic intent. Adaptability is not a departure from strategy—it is often what allows strategy to succeed.
Institutional commitment. Perhaps the most distinctive characteristic is the ability to sustain commitment over decades. Projects evolve, plans are refined, and priorities are reassessed, but the broader objective remains clear. That continuity enables infrastructure, industries, and capabilities whose value can only be realised over generations.
Together, these characteristics transform ambition into sustained execution.
Three examples of long-term execution
Across the Gulf, there are many examples of institutions demonstrating these principles.
Qatar’s North Field expansion provides a compelling example. The project required significant capital, long-term planning, and confidence in the future role of natural gas in global energy markets. More importantly, it required institutions willing to make decisions based on decades rather than quarterly performance.
Saudi Arabia’s electricity infrastructure is one of the strongest. Over several decades, the Kingdom has consistently invested in generation, transmission, and grid reliability to support industrialisation, urbanisation, and economic diversification. As demand increased and technologies advanced, the system continued to evolve. Today, it stands among the region’s most sophisticated power networks, providing the foundation for future economic growth.
The UAE’s Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant reflects the same institutional discipline. Building a nuclear programme required decades of planning, rigorous governance, technical excellence, and sustained commitment. Beyond generating electricity, Barakah demonstrates what institutions can achieve when they remain focused on a strategic objective while successfully managing complexity and risk.
Different countries. Different sectors. Different technologies. Yet they share the same underlying principle: long-term vision supported by institutions capable of sustained execution.
Vision creates direction. Institutions transform that direction into outcomes.
What this moment is teaching us
The world is navigating one of the most complex periods in recent history. Economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, technological disruption, demographic change, and rapidly evolving industries are reshaping the global economy.
In this environment, resilience has become one of the most valuable institutional capabilities. Not resilience as resistance to change. Resilience as the ability to adapt while maintaining direction.
The institutions that will define the next generation of economic growth are not those that attempt to predict every outcome perfectly. They are those capable of remaining disciplined in purpose, flexible in execution, and committed to creating long-term value despite uncertainty.
That is the lesson I have observed throughout my career.
Markets will change. Technologies will evolve. Assumptions will be challenged. The future will rarely unfold exactly as expected. But institutions built on strong governance, strategic clarity, and the ability to adapt without losing focus will continue to create value long after individual market cycles have passed.
Ultimately, the question is not whether projects will encounter challenges. Every meaningful project does. The question is whether the institution behind it has been designed to adapt, endure, and continue building through change.
Because that is how transformative infrastructure is delivered. That is how economies strengthen their foundations. And that is how nations turn long-term ambition into lasting prosperity.
Continued disruption in the Strait of Hormuz continues to weigh on the oil markets. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
The IEA has revised down both its oil supply and demand forecasts as renewed hostilities and Strait of Hormuz disruption have derailed the hoped for recovery in the oil markets
In its August Oil Market report, the IEA forecasts that world oil demand will decline by 1.6mn bpd in 2026, 510,000 bpd more than its previous forecast, thanks to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and continuing high oil prices, although it predicts a return to growth in Q4 2026 and 2027.
Global oil supply rose by 2.4mn bpd to 101.5mn bpd in July, but remained 6.3mn bpd below levels of a year ago, with 8.3mn bpd of Gulf output still shut in. After increasing by 3.7mn bpd in June, Gulf oil production rose by a further 2.5 mn bpd in July to 23.9mn bpd, still 8.3mn bpd below pre-war levels. Regional exports fell by 2.1mn bpd to 15 mn bpd after the Strait was effectively closed once again and tankers came under attack. With no end to hostilities in sight, the IEA now estimates global oil supply to fall by 4.3 mn bpd in 2026, to 102 mn bpd, as growth of 1.4 mn bpd from the Americas only partly offsets losses in the Middle East and Russia.
Refinery crude throughputs increased in July but remained nearly 5mn bpd below last year’s levels, with continued Middle East product export disruptions and attacks on Russian refineries reducing 3Q run estimates by a further 370,000 bpd. Global throughput is now predicted to decline by 2.5mn bpd in 2026 and rebound by 3.5mn bpd in 2027. Diesel, jet fuel and gasoline markets are tightened as reduced Gulf and Russian exports coincide with rising summer travel demand.
Global oil inventories fell in July by 69mn bbl, with renewed disruption to exports from the Gulf and Caspian Sea. Oil stocks now stand at just below 7.9 bbl bbl, down by 2.7mn bpd on average, for the first time since April 2025.
The global oil balance is now expected to show a deficit of 1.8 mn bpd in 3Q26, more than double the estimate of around 800,000 bpd in last month’s Oil Market Report.
“Although the market is projected to return to surplus towards the end of this year, risks remain substantial and the urgency of reopening the Strait has increased, as previously available inventory buffers are rapidly depleting,” the IEA warns.
Baker Hughes will leverage its portfolio of digital and AI automation solutions. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has signed a further technology collaboration contract related to its Ahmadi Innovation Valley initiative as it seeks to enhance upstream performance through the introduction of the most advanced technologies
Kuwait’s national oil company has signed a multi-year contract with Baker Hughes to accelerate technology innovation in the country’s upstream energy sector. It makes Baker Hughes a key technology collaborator in the Ahmadi Innovation Valley (AIV), KOC’s flagship initiative aimed at establishing an in-country research and innovation hub to address its strategic oil and gas development priorities, bringing together industry academic and technology providers to address upstream technical challenges.
Scalable technology solutions
Through the collaboration, Baker Hughes and KOC will focus on developing and deploying scalable, fit-for-purpose technology solutions that optimise production and flow assurance, while addressing other priorities across KOC’s technology roadmap. Baker Hughes will leverage its portfolio of digital and AI automation solutions that help operators increase recovery from existing wells, lower operating costs, reduce water production and minimise power consumption.
“Baker Hughes is committed to deeply understanding KOC’s development aspirations and providing the solutions needed to help achieve them,” said Baker Hughes Chairman and chief executive officer Lorenzo Simonelli. “Working together, we aim to deliver tailored technology solutions at scale that improve production performance and efficiency, supporting KOC’s goals to maximise value from their assets.”
As part of the agreement, Baker Hughes will build a dedicated research and technology development centre in the Ahmadi Innovation Valley to support the evaluation of new solutions, deliver technology solutions at scale and build local expertise.
It comes after KOC’s signing of a seven-year contract with SLB in June, which will see SLB establish a dedicated AIV facility and support applied research, technology deployment and digital innovation programmes focusing on AI, IIoT applications, production optimisation, reservoir technologies, water management and energy transition initiatives. That was followed by a contract with Halliburton in July which will see Halliburton deploy key technologies to execute a tailored programme of projects and engineered solutions with a focus on digital capabilities through the application of data, scientific analysis, and artificial intelligence for the full field lifecycle.
Shift to collaborative arrangements
These arrangements mark a shift from traditional field services to collaboration and co-creation of technology and innovation. They reflect KOC’s focus on innovation and scaling digital solutions, as it seeks to lift crude oil production capacity to 4mn bpd by 2035, positioning the centre as a platform for applied research and upstream technology development.
The platform brings live rig data from across drilling operations into a unified, real-time environment. (Image source: SLB)
In a major move illustrating how it is accelerating the deployment of AI at scale throughout its operations, ADNOC has deployed its AI-enabled Real-Time Operations Center (RTOC) across its fleet of more than 120 onshore and offshore drilling rigs, enabled by SLB’s DrillOps intelligent well delivery and insights solutions
The platform brings live rig data from across drilling operations into a unified, real-time environment that gives ADNOC teams greater visibility of activity across the fleet, helping them improve coordination, identify risks and issues earlier and make faster, more informed decisions, thereby managing operations more effectively. The RTOC combines operational data, automated dashboards, advanced analytics and AI-driven insights to turn large volumes of drilling data into clear, actionable information.
Benefits of the deployment
According to ADNOC, the deployment
• Reduces engineering effort by 30% to 40%
• Enables engineers to support two to three times more rigs while maintaining effective oversight
• Enables analyses that previously required a full day can to be completed within minutes,
• Allows reporting cycles that once took several days to be completed within hours
• Reduces incident response times by four to 12 hours
• Helps avoid one to two days of rig downtime.
Through this initiative, ADNOC continues to embed AI into core workflows and accelerate the transition toward more autonomous and optimised operations. It follows the deployment of the first AI-enabled fully automated walking island rig of a six-rig programme for ADNOC Offshore, enabling faster and more consistent offshore well delivery as ADNOC seeks to up production capacity to 5mn bpd by 2027.
Developed in the UAE and hosted within ADNOC's cloud environment, RTOC keeps critical operational data and workflows securely within the country while providing a trusted foundation for AI-driven operations.
Musabbeh Al Kaabi, ADNOC Upstream CEO, said, "The Real-Time Operations Center creates value across ADNOC’s drilling operations every minute by embedding AI into the heart of our drilling operations, helping our teams make faster, smarter decisions at scale. Built securely here in the UAE, it is further proof that ADNOC is moving from AI ambition to real-world impact as we become the world’s most AI-enabled energy company."
“DrillOps transforms real-time drilling data into operational intelligence that helps teams make faster, more informed decisions,” said Rakesh Jaggi, president, Digital, SLB.
“Deployed within ADNOC’s sovereign cloud environment, the technology provides the scalable digital foundation for AI-enabled workflows across one of the industry’s largest rig fleets and supports the continued progression toward more autonomous operations.”
Margarita Kongawoin, senior vice president of software & HPC at DUG Technology, explains how DUG Insight brings the complete geoscience workflow into a single, integrated package – and why that's changing the way teams work
What do you see as the biggest bottleneck in geoscience software today?
Fragmentation seems to be a major issue slowing geoscience teams down. They often have to work with many different software programmes. Moving data between those applications requires data exchange and format conversion, which takes time and can lead to mistakes. When the data reaches the decision-maker’s desk, time (aka money) and attention have been wasted. This fragmented workflow also prevents people from working together and sharing their different skills in a complementary way.
How does DUG Insight overcome those challenges?
DUG Insight provides a single workspace where geoscientists can work together. For interpreters, this means interactive 2D/3D/gather visualisation with tools for fault and horizon picking, well management and manipulation, crossplotting and AI-assisted interpretation. They can also generate attributes including dip and azimuth, semblance, curvature, spectral decomposition and RGB blending, all on demand.
For processing geophysicists, it offers a full suite of time-processing and depth-imaging tools scalable to massive data volumes from any acquisition geometry – land, marine or ocean-bottom node – with dedicated capabilities for time-lapse (4D) and multicomponent data. Users are not required to run heavy batch processes to test a parameter. On DUG Insight, it takes just seconds to test and QC workflows.
QI specialists get the fastest path to rock properties and probabilistic lithology and fluid prediction, with tools from statistical rock physics, to traditional AVA inversion, to our revolutionary elastic MP-FWI imaging technology.
DUG Insight is the only geoscience software package on the market that spans the complete workflow from seismic data processing and depth imaging through to interpretation, visualisation and rock-property prediction – all in a single, integrated package.
AI is all the buzz now. How does it enhance DUG Insight? What about users who want to bring their own code?
AI tools are now being increasingly integrated into DUG Insight’s workflows for maximum efficiency, whether it’s lithology prediction, fault and horizon interpretation, or accelerated convergence of our MP-FWI.
We also don’t want to lock anyone into a closed box. The software’s API gives users the flexibility to bring their own code into the environment, supporting Java, C/C++, C# and Python. Ultimately, we want to ensure that your custom code is treated with the dignity it deserves. No additional licensing is required, and all intellectual property stays with you.
What’s next for DUG Insight?
We’ve got lots of exciting developments coming soon! Our R&D team continues to embed the latest technology, spanning signal processing to interpretation to algorithmic efficiency. For example, we’re now modelling complex acquisition effects like tides, water-column changes, currents and array geometry, which is vital for full-wavefield imaging and for superior time-lapse (4D) results. On land, we’re inverting ground roll to give high-resolution shear-wave velocity, while the new land statics methodology (AMGRT) solves near-surface complexity to correctly position deep targets. Watch this space!
The new concession will allow the development of large gas cap resources.
TotalEnergies has signed agreement to secure partnership in the ADNOC Onshore-operated Bab Gas Cap Concession in Abu Dhabi, with a 10% interest, alongside ADNOC (60%), bp (10%), CNPC (8%), JODCO/INPEX (5%), ZhenHua (4%) and GS Energy (3%)
The new concession will enable the partners to develop the large gas cap resources of the Bab onshore field, with a target production rate of 1.5 billion cubic feet per day. It builds on the 2015 renewal for 40 years of the Onshore oil concession (formerly ADCO).
Since then, TotalEnergies, alongside ADNOC and its partners, has worked to advance the development of the Bab Gas Cap, which represents a significant growth opportunity. The project also aligns with Abu Dhabi’s strategy to expand both its liquids production from condensates and its gas output while reinforcing its LNG value chain, notably the Ruwais LNG project, in which TotalEnergies also holds 10% interest.
“I would like to thank the Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs of Abu Dhabi for its continued trust. In the current context, this entry in a new concession underlines TotalEnergies’ commitment to stand alongside ADNOC, our historic partner in Abu Dhabi, and to keep contributing to the development of the United Arab Emirates’ significant hydrocarbon resources. The Bab Gas Cap project is well in line with TotalEnergies’ Upstream strategy by adding low-cost, low-emissions resources with significant potential for production growth,” said Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies.
The
The project will boost gas output from the Bahr Essalam gas field. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
PipeSense deployed its PipeScan technology to locate obstructions in two offshore pipeline networks. (Image source: PipeSense)
Pipeline leak detection specialist PipeSense has expanded its capabilities to support offshore operations globally, following a successful project off the coast of Angola
Offshore and subsea pipeline operators undertake highly complex work every day to safely operate, maintain, and protect critical infrastructure in some of the world’s most challenging environments. This requires a continued focus on asset integrity, operational reliability, and the ability to identify and respond to changing pipeline conditions with confidence.
Working with a multinational oil and gas operator, PipeSense deployed PipeScan, its pressure-pulse technology, to monitor a 20-inch natural gas pipeline and a 16-inch offshore crude and multiphase pipeline that was flooded with seawater.
On the natural gas pipeline, PipeSense completed repeated pressure pulse testing to identify an obstruction approximately 11km downstream of the client's launch facility
For the second project, PipeSense installed instrumentation on both ends of the offshore crude and multiphase pipeline. Controlled pressure releases from both locations generated repeatable reflection signatures that identified the obstruction within approximately 700 m of the launcher, with a location accuracy of approximately ±30 m under field conditions.
The projects demonstrated how induced pressure pulse testing, high-speed pressure acquisition, and dynamic pressure wave reflection analysis can be used to accurately determine obstruction location in offshore environments, without interrupting normal pipeline operations or requiring specialised tracking tools.
Josh Holmes, PipeSense's VP of business development, commented, "This project is a clear and concise demonstration that our approach to obstruction locating can provide a practical addition to the pipeline integrity toolkit for locating stuck pigs, hydrate plugs, debris, and other flow restrictions across a wide range of offshore pipeline applications.
“Our goal is to support operators in that mission by providing advanced technologies that deliver greater visibility into pipeline performance and help teams make faster, more informed decisions.”
The company is now looking to roll out its technology in offshore and subsea environments globally, following the success in Angola. This could be good news for the Middle East, with major offshore developments planned and underway such as the UAE’s Umm Shaif Gas Cap, Aramco’s Zuluf increment and Kuwait’s development of its recent discoveries.
McDermott and its Qingdao McDermott Wuchuan (QMW) consortium will provide the complete EPCI scope for a new surface pressure boosting facility, including the construction and installation of a jacket and topside, as well as associated brownfield modifications. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
The venture will focus on copper and other minerals needed for the energy transition. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
The agreements will expand the chemicals ecosystem. (Image source: ADNOC)
TA’ZIZ, a joint venture between ADNOC and ADQ, has signed long-term agreements spanning offtake, feedstock and sales across its chemicals portfolio, valued at US$28.5bn (AED104.6bn)
Signed at the Make it in the Emirates Forum, the agreements, valued at US$28.5bn, secure both global offtake and reliable local feedstocks, allowing for large-scale chemical production within the UAE and reinforcing TA’ZIZ’s role in building a fully integrated domestic chemicals ecosystem. The deals include sale agreements with ADNOC and Proman for methanol; Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) for caustic soda; Mitsubishi Corporation for ethylene dichloride (EDC), vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) and caustic soda; Mitsui & Co. for EDC and caustic soda; Sanmar Group for EDC and VCM; Tricon for PVC, EDC and caustic soda; and Vinmar for EDC and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
ADNOC Gas secured a 25-year feedstock agreement to supply natural gas to the TA'ZIZ methanol project valued at over $5 billion (AED18.4 billion). TA’ZIZ also agreed a 20 year salt supply agreement with Abu Dhabi based Sama Salt to support production at its PVC complex.
Mashal Saoud Al-Kindi, CEO of TA’ZIZ, said, “These long term agreements represent a defining milestone for TA’ZIZ and for the UAE’s industrial growth ambitions. By securing both global demand and reliable local feedstock, we are translating vision into delivery, anchoring world scale chemicals production, strengthening domestic value chains and creating enduring economic value, jobs and supply chain resilience for the UAE.”
Together, these agreements leverage local resources to secure a reliable and sustainable supply of critical raw materials, further strengthening domestic value chains and advancing the UAE’s industrial self sufficiency.
TA’ZIZ is a manufacturing, industrial services, logistics and utilities ecosystem that enables the production of transition fuels and new products across the chemicals value chain, supporting ADNOC’s ambition to become a top three global chemicals player as well as the UAE’s industrial development and economic diversification ambitions.
The TA’ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone is set to produce 4.7 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of chemicals once construction is completed in 2028. This includes a 1 mtpa ammonia plant, a 1.8 mtpa methanol plant and 1.9 mtpa of marketable products from its integrated polyvinyl chloride (PVC) complex. The PVC complex, which produces PVC, ethylene dichloride (EDC), vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), and caustic soda, will be one of the world’s top three largest single site PVC complexes.
Also at the Make it at the Emirates Forum, TA’ZIZ and Alpha Dhabi Holding announced a strategic collaboration agreement for around US$10 bn (AED36.7bn) in capital investment in new industrial chemicals in the TA’ZIZ industrial chemicals ecosystem in Al Ruwais Industrial City, Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi.
The partnership could produce up to 14 new chemicals, delivering around 2.2mn tonnes per annum (mtpa) of additional chemical capacity in the TA’ZIZ industrial chemicals ecosystem in Al Ruwais Industrial City. The new chemicals, which include styrene and polystyrenes, acrylic acid and derivates, polyols, MDI, epoxy resins and linear alpha-olefins, are based on domestic demand and could substitute key products currently imported into the UAE, while strengthening local supply chain resilience. The partnership supports the UAE’s national industrial priorities, including the Make it in the Emirates (MIITE) initiative and the country’s industrial strategy, by strengthening domestic manufacturing capability and advancing self-sufficiency in strategically important chemical products.
Musaab Al Mulla (right) in conversation with Daniel Evans, VP, global head, fuels & refining, S&P Global Energy. (Image source: S&P Global Energy)
Demand could also drop in markets that have so far weathered the crisis. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
Gemini X delivers a step change in operational efficiency, sharper subsurface imaging, faster turnaround and more confident exploration decisions. (Image source: TGS)
TGS, a leading global provider of energy data and intelligence, has announced the launch of Gemini X, Gemini X combines TGS' industry-leading Gemini source technology with Apparition, TGS' proprietary encoded acquisition and source separation capability, enabling coordinated multi-source acquisition
Gemini X delivers a step change in operational efficiency, sharper subsurface imaging and faster turnaround, facilitating more confident exploration decisions. By strengthening data quality at the point of acquisition, it improves performance across the entire value chain, from acquisition and advanced imaging workflows such as full-waveform inversion (FWI) in complex subsalt and frontier basins, through to the drill decisions that follow. Following successful testing in the Gulf of America, Gemini X is now available worldwide.
Gemini X helps redefine exploration, especially in ocean-bottom node (OBN) operations, combining fit-for-purpose acquisition with the imaging technology needed to solve complex geology. The result is imaging quality once reserved for high-value production surveys, now practical and affordable at basin exploration scale.
At the core of Gemini X are TGS’ Gemini enhanced frequency source (EFS) and TGS' proprietary encoded-acquisition and source-separation technology, which enable multiple Gemini sources to operate simultaneously while preserving broadband signal fidelity and the extended low frequencies critical for high-end imaging.
Carel Hooijkaas, executive vice president of Marine Data Acquisition, TGS, stated, "For years, ocean-bottom nodes have been seen as a tool for mature fields and production monitoring. Gemini X resets that thinking. By running multiple Gemini sources in parallel, we acquire cleaner, higher-quality data far more efficiently, bringing the imaging power of OBN to basin-scale exploration. This lets our clients skip a generation of seismic acquisition technology while benefiting from sharper images, faster turnaround, and the confidence to make key exploration decisions sooner."
TGS is also teaming up with Chevron in a strategic collaboration focused on advancing next-generation seismic imaging technology. Under the agreement, the two companies will jointly invest in research and development across key technical domains, including Elastic Full Waveform Inversion (eFWI) and machine learning-driven workflows, leveraging TGS' Imaging AnyWare platform and Chevron's proprietary algorithms.
"This collaboration reflects TGS' ambition to evolve into a true strategic imaging partner and to push the boundaries of what is possible in subsurface imaging," said Kristian Johansen, CEO of TGS. "Combining our platform, talent and scale with Chevron's world-class geoscience expertise creates meaningful long-term value for both organisations."
The two teams. (Image source: DUG)
Competence is a must for high-risk tasks. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
How do complacency and human factors contribute to workplace injuries, and how can you prevent complacency-related injuries and incidents?
That is the subject of a webinar hosted by HSE Review in association with SafeStart, to take place on Wednesday 1st April 2026 at 2pm GST, which will shine a light on the neuroscience behind competence, complacency and human factors.
Safety professionals have known for years that “complacency is a silent killer.” They have also suspected that complacency was a contributing factor in almost every unintentional injury or incident. Unfortunately, from a neuroscience perspective, it is impossible to stop people from becoming complacent once they are competent. And for high-risks tasks in particular, competence is a must.
Even more unfortunately, many (most) companies do not know what to do to help their employees deal with complacency, which leads to mind not on task/risk.
In this session, participants will:
• Understand the neuroscience behind complacency and why it cannot be eliminated once competence is achieved
• Recognise the two stages of the complacency continuum and how human factors impact critical decision-making
• Learn practical skills to prevent complacency-related injuries, including attentive habits, looking for risk patterns in others, analysing close calls and small errors to prevent agonising over large ones, and using self-triggering skills, to deal with rushing, frustration and fatigue which, when combined with complacency, can cause fatalities
• Explore how concepts such as fail-safe can help compensate for complacency leading to mind not on task.
Register for the webinar here
Our speaker is Larry Wilson, a pioneer in the area of Human Factors in safety. He has been a safety consultant for over 25 years and has worked on-site with hundreds of companies worldwide. Larry is the author of SafeStart, an advanced safety and performance awareness programme, successfully implemented in more than 4,500 companies in 75 countries, with more than five million people trained. He is the moderator of the SafeConnection expert panels series and has authored and co-authored a number of books, the latest being “25 Years of Original Thought-Innovations in Safety, Human Error and Performance”. Larry is also an active keynote speaker at health and safety conferences around the globe (32 countries so far).
Participants are guaranteed an hour of engaging and thought-provoking interactive discussion and debate and will take away the understanding, skills and strategies to help prevent complacency-related injuries and incidents.
So don’t delay, register for the webinar here
SafeStart Trainer Certification – Global Training Series
Following strong demand last year and impact across global markets, we’re also launching the SafeStart Trainer Certification – Global Training Series, starting with Dubai on 7–8 April 2026.
This is a practical, human factors–based certification designed to help organisations reduce incidents, strengthen decision-making, and improve overall safety performance, on and off the job.
Find out more information and register here:
The webinar 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. (Image source: Flyability)
The webinar will address the risks and realities of dissimilar flange connections. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
The new guidance addresses hydrogen-specific integrity and safety considerations. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
DNV has published a recommended practice (RP) for offshore hydrogen pipelines, supporting safe design, operation and requalification of pipeline infrastructure for transporting hydrogen
DNV-RP-F123 Hydrogen pipeline systems addresses hydrogen-specific integrity and safety considerations. It supplements DNV’s established submarine pipeline standard, DNV-ST-F101 and adds additional guidance tailored to transporting hydrogen gas and hydrogen blends in pipeline systems. It is relevant for new pipeline developments as well as for the requalifying of existing offshore infrastructure for hydrogen transport, supporting broader efforts to scale hydrogen networks.
Hydrogen is expected to play an increasing role in cutting emissions from hard-to-decarbonise sectors. However the transportation of hydrogen by pipeline faces certain risks and considerations, such as embrittlement.
DNV-RP-F123 has been developed through the H2Pipe joint industry project (JIP), which ran from 2021 to 2026 and brought together 37 industry partners across operators, manufacturers, engineering companies and academic advisors to provide guidance for engineering projects and qualification work.
The next step is large-scale testing to validate data and advance existing standards. This phase will include full-scale pipe testing at DNV’s Spadeadam Research and Development Facility. The results will feed into the continued development of DNV-RP-F123 and future guidance.
“Hydrogen service fundamentally changes the integrity picture for pipeline systems,” explained Prajeev Rasiah, executive vice president and regional director for Northern Europe, Energy Systems at DNV, “it cannot be treated as a simple variant of natural gas. This recommended practice moves beyond theoretical study to provide an evidence-based framework for assessing hydrogen-specific risks in design, requalification, and operation. By closing the gaps around material suitability and safety margins, we are giving teams the technical clarity needed to move projects from the study phase into execution. This is particularly vital for requalifying existing infrastructure, where the guidance helps define exactly what must be tested or upgraded to ensure a safe reliable and sustainable transition.”
“The objective of the H2Pipe JIP is to build guidance grounded in shared data and real technical experience from testing,” added Philippe Darcis, chairman of the H2Pipe JIP Steering Committee and Pipeline Technology Senior Director at Tenaris. “The real value of the H2Pipe JIP is in turning years of shared data into credible, site-ready guidance that engineers can use to scale hydrogen infrastructure. This is a practical tool built to reduce the 'unknowns' that often stall investment. Because it was developed through industry-wide collaboration, it gives operators a robust basis for making decisions, allowing us to move forward with fewer assumptions and greater confidence in our safety and performance standards.”
Abu Dhabi is leading the way in hydrogen development. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
the crisis and the increased focus on energy security are renewing interest in hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
Most Read
-
TotalEnergies will support the refinery with its global oil and feedstock supply capacity. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
HE Abdulsalam bin Mohammed Al Murshidi, the president of Oman Investment Authority (OIA)
-
The new range has been launched in response to the demand for compact and lightweight lifeboats. (Image source: VIKING)
-
Comparison of conventional workflow with DUG MP-FWI imaging. (Image source: DUG)
-
TotalEnergies and SONATRACH will develop gas resources in Algeria's north-east Timimoun region, (Image source: Adobe Stock).
-
The programme will optimise asset lifecycle, enhance machinery performance and improve overall reliability. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
Human factors need to be taken into account when addressing safety. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
The expansion is expected to increase the plant’s processing capacity from 2.5 to up to 4 billion standard cubic feet per day (bscfd). (Image source: Aramco)
-
The programme is designed to strengthen leadership and safety culture in the oil and gas industry> (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
The system can activate notification and hazard mitigation equipment to notify workers and safeguard facilities. (Image source: MSA Safety)
-
By using analytics to augment and empower the workforce, pipeline operators can optimise operations and improve asset availability. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
- Details
-
To improve differentiation, hard hats can be customised with different colours and logos. (Image source: MSA Safety)
- Details
-
Block 56 is targeted for commercialisation in 2024. (Image source: Canva)
-
Over 4,000 km of SoluForce pipe has been installed around the world. (Image source: SoluForce)
-
The use of blockchain in the oil and gas sector is set to increase substantially. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
The partnership will enable HMi Elements to tap into Cobic-Ex’s global network. (Image source: HMi Elements)
-
Source: SafeStart
-
Operators have never needed to take safety and efficiency more seriously. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
Among other services, KBR will offer proprietary equipment for NCIC's 1,200 metric tonnes per day ammonia plant. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
Ampelmann’s portfolio of gangways is ready for operations on any type of floating structure. (Image source: Ampelmann)
Latest News
-
McDermott and its Qingdao McDermott Wuchuan (QMW) consortium will provide the complete EPCI scope for a new surface pressure boosting facility, including the construction and installation of a jacket and topside, as well as associated brownfield modifications. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
The workshop will show how Flyability's Elios 3 is transforming the way challenging inspections are approached.
-
The two teams. (Image source: DUG)
-
PipeSense deployed its PipeScan technology to locate obstructions in two offshore pipeline networks. (Image source: PipeSense)
-
The venture will focus on copper and other minerals needed for the energy transition. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
Dr Manar Al Moneef
-
Gemini X delivers a step change in operational efficiency, sharper subsurface imaging, faster turnaround and more confident exploration decisions. (Image source: TGS)
-
With DIAL, operators can adjust valve settings remotely from the surface. (Image source: Silverwell)
-
Continued disruption in the Strait of Hormuz continues to weigh on the oil markets. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
Baker Hughes will leverage its portfolio of digital and AI automation solutions. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
The controller is designed for increasingly complex industrial environments. (Image source: Teledyne Gas and Flame Detection)
-
The platform brings live rig data from across drilling operations into a unified, real-time environment. (Image source: SLB)
-
ADNOC Gas is accelerating gas expansion. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
-
The Middle East is home to many ageing oil and gas facilities. (Image source: ASCO)
-
Amin H. Nasser, CEO of Aramco. (Image source: Aramco)
-
The Sigma Enterprises team with the Scout 137 drone. (Image source: ScoutDI)
-
ADNOC is combining the expertise of its people, deep operational experience, cross-functional collaboration and advanced technologies to accelerate well delivery. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
More Articles
The controller is designed for increasingly complex industrial environments. (Image source: Teledyne Gas and Flame Detection)
Connected technologies are transforming how organisations achieve visibility. (Image source: MSA Safety)
The luminaires are suited to hazardous environments such as petrochemical plants. (Image source: Emerson)
Complacency can lead people to do something they know increases the likelihood of mind or eyes not on task. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
The IMIST standard addresses risks in the energy sector. (Image source: Shutterstock)
The X1 Series is an advanced universal marshalling system engineered for hazardous areas and high-integrity SIL applications. (Image source: GM International))
New challenges are emerging in mitigating health and safety incidents in hazardous zones. (Image source: Avigilon)
The Peli 9730 remote Area Lighting System. (Image source: Peli Products)
BOSIET training equips offshore workers with the necessary skills to work safety and effectively. (Image source: Adobe Stock)
The SHP-SIS Safety Smart High-Performance Positioner
The Hub features the latest thinking in gas detection technology. (Image source: MSA Safety)
Stephen Beynon demonstrates FLIR's OGI cameras at ADIPEC. (Image source: Alain Charles Publishing)