Industry

Operators need to optimise all drilling processes, including waste management. (Image source: Shutterstock)

As Gulf drilling activity scales, operators are rethinking waste management, says Pierre-Marie Hinden, UAE general manager, TWMA

In the pursuit of expanding oil and gas production across the Gulf, the question increasingly front of mind for many operators is how much more output can be achieved by improving operational efficiency, rather than simply adding more drilling activity.

That question is coming into sharper focus now as the UAE races toward expanding production capacity. ADNOC is leading the charge, accelerating toward its goal of reaching 5 million barrels per day production capacity by 2027 and potentially beyond if needed. And the UAE is not alone as Saudi Arabia continues to ramp up major offshore and unconventional gas developments, while operators across the wider region are expanding drilling campaigns with goals to increase operational capacity.

As Gulf states recover and aggressively rebuild from impacts of the conflict on energy assets, this momentum is expected to continue well through 2027 and beyond. This in turn is driving operators to look more closely at their operations to find efficiencies and recover value. Every operational decision is under increased pressure to maximise performance while minimising cost and, as a result, leading operators are beginning to challenge established practices and examine how every aspect of operations can be adjusted to improve performance.

That includes areas such as drilling waste management, an essential but often overlooked part of drilling operations, which if optimised, can unlock major cost, efficiency, safety and sustainability benefits.

Is traditional drilling waste management still fit for purpose?

Offshore, a typical approach to tackling drilling waste is skip and ship. Here, waste is collected offshore, loaded into skips, transported by vessel to shore and then processed and disposed of on land. It remains a familiar and compliant approach, but one that can also introduce operational complexity, logistical dependency, high emissions and significant hidden costs.

An alternative method is at-source treatment which in a lot of ways, substantially outperforms traditional approaches including across safety, cost, environmental and overall operational efficiency. Rather than transporting waste back onshore, thermal treatment technologies such as the RotoMill allow drill cuttings, slops and sludges to be processed directly at the wellsite. That means fewer vessel movements, fewer lifting operations and significantly reduced logistics requirements. At the same time, valuable base fluids can be recovered from drill cuttings and reused onsite.

To put this into perspective, since 2014, in collaboration with a major operator in the UAE, TWMA’s RotoMill has processed more than 600,000 tonnes of drilling waste, accumulated legacy waste and slop at source. Working with the operator across multiple fields has eliminated more than 70,000 km of transport, reducing carbon emissions by 50%, as well as significantly reducing handling and logistics requirements. Combined with the recovery of approximately US$78mn worth of base fluid for reuse, the total savings are in excess of US$200 mn.

As production ambitions and drilling activity continue to scale across the Gulf, but so do does attention on cost, efficiency and sustainability, case studies like this show what can be achieved by optimising every part of the operation.

What is the real cost of offshore operations?

While operators are increasingly taking a total cost of ownership (TCO) approach across the well lifecycle, there can still be a tendency to focus on upfront costs. But the reality is, what may appear a lower-cost solution on face value, can create wider operational inefficiencies and spend elsewhere.

Traditional skip and ship approaches, for example, may reduce costs at the rig site, but they can also increase vessel demand, fuel consumption and handling requirements and disposal costs. Predicting those knock-on effects is not always easy, and this is where specialist drilling waste management expertise, when brought into projects early, can help operators gain a clearer view of the full operational picture and what tailored solution works for their needs. That includes navigating relevant regulatory requirements, as well as understanding that offshore processing solutions can deliver savings of up to 60% compared to traditional skip and ship methods, or that for a typical 60-day operation, total costs for skip and ship can reach around US$1.24mn, compared to approximately US$510,000 for offshore processing.

Looking ahead, the ambitions of the region, as they always have been, are significant, and we see that through key operators’ production ambitions, as just one example. But scale and expansion is really only one part of the picture. Without doubling down on optimisation of all drilling processes, efficiency, cost and sustainability gains will be left on the table at a time when there is no room for anything but profitable growth.

The new system recovers gas that was previously wasted.

As operators increasingly turn to the latest technologies to achieve their emissions reduction objectives, a leading Omani oil producer used advanced automation to cut site emissions, working with partners Multivista and Flaroman – a division of Majees Technical Services

One of the largest oil and gas producers in Oman operates facilities that extract around 66,000 barrels of oil per day. Alongside its production capabilities, the company is committed to reducing carbon and other emissions and supporting Oman in meeting its obligations under the Paris Agreement.

The producer needed to improve the efficiency and cost effectiveness of gas flaring at its Khamilah oil field, while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other byproducts associated with the process. A key objective was to recover more gas that would otherwise be wasted, enabling it to be cleaned and reused for power generation.

At the same time, the company sought to enhance the safety and resilience of its operations. Any new system for gas recovery and flaring needed to operate with a high degree of precision and control, ensuring reliability in what is an extreme and hazardous environment.

The solution

To address these requirements, the producer partnered with Multivista Oman and Flaroman, specialists in industrial systems and flare control equipment. Together, they designed and installed an advanced flow regulating and flare control system.

The solution incorporated an automated design for zero flaring and flare gas recovery, supported by a redundant control system based on Allen Bradley ControlLogix. Integrated between controllers and I O modules, this system delivered high levels of precision, performance and reliability.

The project also included advanced data collection and reporting systems, alongside integrated safety systems. These features improved transparency, minimised operational risk and strengthened overall system resilience while enhancing performance across gas flow and flare control processes.

With the new system in place, recovered gas that was previously wasted can now be delivered to the national gas pipeline, supporting energy supply for both industry and consumers.

Enhanced data collection and reporting provide greater visibility and control, enabling operators to respond quickly to alarms and changing conditions. This improves both operational efficiency and safety.

The system has also improved emissions handling, reducing greenhouse gases and other unwanted byproducts released into the atmosphere. This supports environmental goals and contributes to Oman’s wider climate commitments.

In addition, precision multi discipline control has optimised the productivity of key processes, improved combustion system performance and enhanced flare operations, including smokeless flaring.

Overall, the solution has increased reliability, strengthened safety and delivered more efficient, controlled operations.

The global economic outlook has deteriorated sharply in recent weeks, and the fallout from the Middle East crisis is expected to hit the Middle East and North Africa the hardest, according to the latest edition of the World Economic Forum’s Chief Economists’ Outlook

Nearly nine in ten chief economists surveyed expect global growth to weaken over the next 12 months, in contrast to the cautious optimism seen at the start of the year, as conflict in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz fuel concerns over a major global economic shock.

Chief economists expect that If the closure of the Strait of Hormuz persists into the second half of the year, its impact could approach the severity of the COVID-19 crisis, compounding effects across global supply chains, energy and food costs. An overwhelming 94% of the surveyed chief economists expect global inflation to increase over the coming year.

“Only months ago, the Chief Economists community was cautiously optimistic. The conflict in the Middle East changed that, and the economic scarring from the situation thus far is already expected to last into the months ahead,” said Saadia Zahidi, managing director, World Economic Forum. “The longer the disruption lasts, the heavier the long-term cost for those who can least afford it.”

Uneven regional outlook

The Middle East and North Africa region is the hardest hit. After being viewed as one of the brighter economic regions only months ago, 88% of the surveyed chief economists now expect weak or very weak growth – the sharpest regional reversal in the survey – a direct reflection of the conflict, higher regional food exposure, and weaker employment prospects. Elsewhere, the outlook is mixed: inflation expectations have climbed sharply in sub-Saharan Africa, while Europe faces mounting stagflation risks as growth weakens and inflation fears mount. By contrast, India and the United States are expected to remain relatively resilient, supported by domestic demand and investment. This edition also examines how multinational companies are recalibrating investment and supply chains in a more fractured risk environment, with the US, India and South-East Asia seen as the most attractive business locations.

Despite the sharp deterioration, most of the chief economists do not expect a recession within the next 12 months, even as they see little prospect of the economy growing more resilient in the near term. Much will depend on the length of the disruption: a shorter shock could leave room for recovery, while a prolonged closure would deepen the strain on the global economy. Financial markets are expected to come under increasing strain, with 79% of respondents anticipating rising volatility in private debt markets over the next year; 74% also expect public debt market volatility to increase and 68% expect stock market volatility to increase.

The Chief Economists’ Outlook builds on consultations and surveys with leading chief economists from the public and private sectors, organised by the World Economic Forum’s Centre for the New Economy and Society.

LNG investment is expected to more than double in 2026 compared with 2025. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Oil investment is set to decline for a third consecutive year, while natural gas investment is projected to rise to the highest level in a decade, according to the 2026 edition of the IEA’s annual World Energy Investment report

Despite higher oil prices, oil investment is expected to fall below US$500bn, as uncertainty over the duration of the price spike, long project lead times, supply chain constraints and tighter offshore rig markets limit spending outside the Middle East.

Global upstream investment is expected to rise marginally in 2026, with declines in the Middle East and North America offset by increases mainly in Central and South America and Africa, but new refinery investment is expected to fall to decade-level lows.

At the same time, natural gas investment is projected to rise to US$330bn, supported by a wave of new LNG export projects, particularly in the USA and Qatar. LNG investment is expected to more than double in 2026 compared with 2025 as more than 230 bcm of projects advance toward peak construction.

The report highlights that the impact of the conflict in the Middle East and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz is prompting countries and companies to reshape energy investment strategies with a focus on security and diversification, particularly in Asia and the Middle East.

The report projects that total global energy investment will reach US$3.4 trillion in 2026, a slight increase year-on-year. Around US$2.2 trillion is expected to go to grids, storage, low-emissions fuels, nuclear, renewables, efficiency and electrification in 2026, while around US$1.2 trillion is set to be invested in oil, natural gas and coal.

Electricity and diversification drive spending

Electricity and diversification are driving growth in energy spending with countries seeking to respond to the second energy crisis in five years with new routes and domestically available resources. There is a growing focus among fuel-importing countries on domestic energy sources including renewables, nuclear power and, in some cases, coal. Investment in renewable power projects is expected to total around US$665bn in 2026, with US$365bn going toward solar alone. Nuclear investment is continuing its resurgence, exceeding US$80bn annually, with close to 80 gigawatts of new nuclear capacity under construction across 15 countries.

Coal investment, meanwhile, is also set to rise to US$180bn in 2026, the highest level since 2012, with China accounting for almost 70% of global coal supply spending. The report notes that some Asian countries may seek to keep existing coal-fired power plants operating for longer to bolster energy security.

Electricity-related investment remains a dominant theme. Investment in electricity supply and infrastructure is expected to reach nearly US$1.6 trillion in 2026 with spending on electricity grids projected to approach US$550bn, up nearly 20% year-on-year, while battery storage investment is set to exceed US$100bn.

The electricity demands of the rapid expansion of data centres and artificial intelligence are also becoming a major influence on energy investment trends in some markets, particularly in the USA. Orders for new gas-fired power plants reached a 25-year high in 2025, with data centre needs playing a significant role.

The report highlights an increased focus on energy efficiency as a result of the crisis, although there are plenty of gaps that need to be filled.

The report notes that the Middle East conflict is impacting the availability of finance for future energy projects, triggering volatility within financial markets, slowing investment decisions in the short term and pushing up long-term financing costs. This could disproportionately affect capital-intensive energy technologies, the report warns, particularly in emerging and developing economies where financing costs are already significantly higher than in advanced economies.

“We are in the midst of the largest energy security crisis the world has ever faced – and I believe this will reshape investment strategies globally, with parallels to the major changes the energy world witnessed after the oil shocks of the 1970s,” said IEA executive director Fatih Birol. “We are already seeing intensified efforts by both producer and consumer countries to diversify trade routes and energy sources – such as advancing new pipelines and other supply infrastructure, on the one hand, and turning more to domestically available resources, on the other. These range from renewables and nuclear to coal, oil and gas, in some cases – as well as broader measures to strengthen electricity systems, expand electrification and accelerate energy efficiency.”