Abu Dhabi calls off $500 mln offshore oil project

Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Company (Adma-Opco) has cancelled a $500 million project at the offshore Umm Shaif field, sources familiar with the matter told Middle East Economic Digest (MEED).

Adma-Opco, a subsidiary of state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), has been mulling over whether to proceed with the project given the ongoing oil slump, a source said.

The company received engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) bids last October from local and international firms for the project, aimed at sustaining crude production capacity at the Umm Shaif field at 275,000 barrels per day.

Project bidders included the UAE’s National Petroleum Construction Company (NPCC), US-based McDermott, and UK-based Petrofac, with NPCC submitting the winning bid, sources said.

The oil industry in Abu Dhabi has faced declining revenues, like elsewhere in the Gulf region, on account of low prices. Last month, it was reported that ADNOC planned to cut 5,000 jobs by the end of 2016, with 2,000 employees having been laid off since the year began.