Industry professionals gathered at the event to celebrate the inauguration of the latest report from The Oil & Gas Year on the Abu Dhabi market. At the event, the UAE Undersecretary of Minister of Energy H.E. Dr. Matar Hamed Al Neyadi delivered a keynote address. The speech was followed by the year’s awards ceremony, which recognised the achievements and leadership demonstrated by Abu Dhabi’s finest institutions over the past twelve months.

ADNOC and Total were presented with the Partnership of the Year award for their joint project with the Masdar Institute and the Petroleum Institute for the consortium’s work on the Digital Rock Physics Project. Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company, more commonly known as Takreer, received the award for carbon offsetting efforts for their work with Spanish engineering company Intecsa Industrial. For the successful commissioning of the Shah Gas Development Project at the end of 2015, Al Hosn Gas, a joint venture composed of ADNOC and Occidental Petroleum, received the Project Execution of the Year award. The National Drilling Company of Abu Dhabi took home the Best Technology Adoption of the Year award for their innovative island rigs. Finally, for their work in adapting proven technology to work in Abu Dhabi’s sour gas fields, Schlumberger received the Best Oilfield Services Company award.

The Oil & Gas Year Abu Dhabi 2016 explores the emirates’ progress in digital technology at the oilfield and competency building within the nation’s younger generation of industry professionals. The publication includes an updated map of Abu Dhabi’s onshore and offshore hydrocarbons concessions as well as a special chapter dedicated to the UAE’s Ministry of Energy’s landmark decision to remove transport fuel subsidies, implemented in the second half of 2015.

In the publication UAE Minister of Energy H.E. Suhail Mohamed Faraj Al Mazrouei was quoted as saying, “The development of existing fields requires a lot of capital expenditure and use of the latest technologies. All these elements are available in Abu Dhabi and I think we will be able to reach our goals. Our main strength is our portfolio of oil and gas assets and our proven reserves, as well as the quality of our reservoirs.”

The event was sponsored by Ali & Sons Oilfields Supplies & Services, Dubai Cable Company (Ducab), Huawei Technologies, Kaspersky, Occidental Petroleum, Schlumberger, Siemens, Weatherford International and Wood Group PSN.

The Oil & Gas Year is a series of executive reports produced on more than 30 countries. The publication’s global circulation is audited by BPA Worldwide and has an international readership of 69,000 readers in 101 countries.

For more news and features on the oil and gas industry in Abu Dhabi, click here.

The Oil & Gas Year Angola 2016 report was launched at the EPIC SANA Hotel in the Angolan capital of Luanda. The event was attended by Secretary of State for Oil Mr. Aníbal Silva and was exclusively sponsored by leading inspection and verification company SGS Angola.

The third edition of The Oil & Gas Year Angola brings focus to such key topics as the new foreign exchange regime applied to the oil sector, strategies to increasing production capacity, stimulating infrastructure development and driving sustainable growth, given the economic challenges that face the global energy sector. The book also dedicates a special chapter to the critical role enhanced local content regulations are likely to play in the country’s upstream oil and gas sector in the short and medium term.

At the ceremony, the team of The Oil & Gas Year distributed six awards honouring individuals, companies and projects for their exceptional contributions to the market over the past year. President of AECIPA Braulio De Brito was selected as the Person of the Year for his outstanding commitment to harnessing changes and improving regulations of the Angolan energy business environment. The Development of the Year award was presented to the new deep-water port under construction in Caio that represents a major logistic breakthrough for the country’s future oil and gas sector. For its $100 million investment in a new state-of-the-art facility in the northern region of Cabinda, Halliburton received the Investment of the Year award. Grupo Simples Oil was presented the award for Local Company of the Year, while Pumangol Industrial received the Downstream Project of the Year recognition for the company’s brand new conventional buoy system located next to the Fishing Port of Luanda. Lastly, the Local Content Performer of the Year award was distributed to the Angolan arm of leading global oilfield chemicals company Nalco.

The discussion came at a time when Congo is passing key milestones, which include the launch of its first major bid round in 10 years, the first revision of a key hydrocarbons code in more than 15 years, and the start-up of the first phase of Total’s 140,000-barrel-per-day Moho Nord project. During the high-level debate, participants shared perspectives on the impact of low oil prices, their suggestions and frustrations for the long-awaited hydrocarbons code, and the unfortunate neglect of one Congo’s key resources: natural gas.

Energy report The Oil & Gas Year Nigeria 2015 was launched at Eko Hotel in Lagos, Nigeria on August 4, 2015.

The Oil & Gas Year Nigeria 2015 places special focus on the rise of indigenous integrated companies and the impact of the Local Content Act on the on the country’s oil and gas industry.

The book also emphasises the issues faced by Nigeria in a period of low oil prices, and as the country is expected to reform its public oil company and rethink its fiscal and legislative framework following the successful change of presidential administration in March 2015.

The Oil & Gas Year is published by Wildcat International, with its fourth edition in Nigeria produced in collaboration with the Department of Petroleum Resources, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, and Oando Group.

At the ceremony, The Oil & Gas Year team distributed six awards. President Muhammadu Buhari was selected as the Person of the Year for his plans to revamp Nigeria’s hydrocarbons industry by implementing structural reforms in the country’s institutions and fiscal regimes.

The Engineering Project of the Year was presented to a consortium led by the National Engineering and Technical Company, which also includes DeltaAfrik Engineering and International Energy Services. The group will be responsible for the design and engineering of the topside process modules for the Egina project’s floating production, storage and offloading facility.

Nigerian integrated company Aiteo Group was given the Deal of the Year award for its acquisition of Shell, Total and Eni’s 45-percent stake in oil mining licence 29 and the 100-kilometre Nembe Creek Trunk Line pipeline for an estimated $2.5 billion.

The Upstream Company of the Year was given to marginal field producer Midwestern Oil & Gas for completing the construction of the 51-kilometre Umugini pipeline.

For achieving a turnover of more than $700 million in 2014 and contributing to the country’s Gas Master Plan in 2014 through its projects, Nigerian engineering services company Makon Group was presented the Local Content Performer of the Year award.

The award for Financial Institution of the Year was given to the Nigeria Stock Exchange for its role in supporting the $500-million initial public offering of Nigerian independent hydrocarbons company Seplat Petroleum in April 2014, the first-ever dual listing to take place between the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges.

The Oil & Gas Year is the flagship title of Wildcat International, a publisher of business intelligence resources. The Oil & Gas Year produces yearly annual executive books and events on more than 33 petroleum provinces that are critical business tools for energy investors, highlighting and promoting key actors and opportunities. Global circulation to a readership of 69,000 readers in 101 countries is audited by BPA Worldwide.

The book was launched in the presence of H.E. Salim bin Nasser Al Aufi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Oil and Gas of the Sultanate of Oman, and under the patronage of the Ministry of Oil and Gas and the Oman Society for Petroleum Services (OPAL).

The event was attended by some of the industry’s leaders and saw a number of awards distributed to key individuals, organisations and projects for their achievements over the past year.

The Oil & Gas Year Oman 2015 places special focus on how the country is using enhanced oil recovery to achieve record production highs while building up its infrastructure and downstream sector to further these advances.

The book also explores Oman’s approach to in-country value through interviews and a roundtable debate with key players in the country’s localisation initiative.

The Oil & Gas Year published its fifth edition in Oman produced in collaboration with the Ministry of Oil and Gas and OPAL.

At the ceremony, The Oil & Gas Year team distributed six awards. Raoul Restucci, managing director of Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), was selected as Man of the Year for his leadership of Oman’s top oil producer. Under Restucci, PDO has spearheaded developments in enhanced oil recovery and in-country value.

National Training Institute was named Training Provider of the Year for its role in fostering a local workforce with the technical expertise needed to tackle Oman’s complex oil and gas developments.

The award for Local Company of the Year was given to Al Sahari Oil Services, one of the five super local community contractors created under a PDO initiative to boost Omani businesses. With a commitment to sourcing new technology, Al Sahari Oil Services has tripled its market value since its creation.

The Sohar Refinery Improvement Project was honoured as Project of the Year for its central role in expanding Oman’s refining capacity.

The award for Contractor of the Year went to Galfar Engineering & Contracting. Oman’s largest engineering and contracting firm has recently secured key contracts for the Khazzan Project and Duqm Refinery, boosting a work backlog now valued at $1.75 billion.

Intaj, a growing Omani integrated oil and gas company, was named Newcomer of the Year following its award of block 56 with partner Medco in late 2014.

“This book is a sum of leaders opinions and information to let the world know how Oman has managed to turn around its production decline, and is today a world centre of hydrocarbons production innovation,” said Gilles Valentin, managing partner of The Oil & Gas Year.

H.E. Al Aufi congratulated the TOGY team for their work and urged the industry members present at the ceremony to keep pressing on with their efforts to increase production in the sultanate. He extended his congratulations to the Omani oil and gas industry for posting record-high production figures in July 2015.

The Oil & Gas Year produces yearly annual executive books and events on more than 33 petroleum provinces that are critical business tools for energy investors, highlighting and promoting key actors and opportunities. Global circulation to a readership of 69,000 readers in 101 countries is audited by BPA Worldwide.

The roundtable panel was attended by esteemed speakers from the country’s oil and gas industry, including Campetrol president Rubén Darío Lizarralde Montoya, Centre of Strategic International Studies senior advisor Luis Giusti, Acipet executive director Juan Carlos Rodríguez Esparza, Estrella International Energy Services general manager Ricardo Sarmiento, Geopark director of business development Enrique Velásquez, PwC Oil and Gas Advisory director of energy Raul Garay, Norton Rose Fulbright Group partner Jorge Neher, Panthers Machinery president and general manager Pedro González.

The discussion was titled “Regaining Colombia’s Competitive Edge,” and analysed a range of topics including government regulations and incentives regarding oil and gas development, co-ordination between the public and private sectors, Colombia’s investment climate, the domestic market’s strengths and weaknesses and approaches to leadership in the regional energy industry. The Oil & Gas Year’s country director for Colombia, Tomás Gerbasio, moderated the event.

The roundtable session will be featured in The Oil & Gas Year’s fifth energy report on the country, The Oil & Gas Year, Colombia 2016. The book will highlight Colombia’s most important and influential companies, projects, individuals and policies throughout the energy chain.

For more news and features on Colombia, click here. 

The Oil & Gas Year Equatorial Guinea 2015 places special focus on the diversification of Equatorial Guinea’s hydrocarbons industry through the development of downstream projects that will change the economic structure of the country: the REPEGE complex, the Mbini Industrial City, the Petroleum Industrial City of Luba and the Bioko Oil Terminal.

The projects are fundamental to the country’s overall development strategy, which is established in the Horizon 2020 plan. Equatorial Guinea seeks to expand its role in the Gulf of Guinea by becoming a regional energy centre.

The Oil & Gas Year is published by Wildcat International, with its fifth edition in Equatorial Guinea produced in collaboration with the Ministry of Mines, Industry and Energy and Centurion Law Group.

At the ceremony, the The Oil & Gas Year team distributed six awards. Ministry of Mines, Industry and Energy Secretary General Agustín Mba Okomo was selected as the Person of the Year for his efforts to formalise the country’s national content rules through a new regulation passed in September 2014.

A veteran in the Equatoguinean oil and gas industry, Mobil Equatorial Guinea was named the Exploration and Production Company of the Year. In May 2015, the company saw its billionth barrel of oil pumped from the Zafiro field, which has provided more than $57.5 billion in revenues for the country.

The Fortuna floating LNG project received an award for being the Upstream Project of the Year. Operator Ophir Energy signed gas fiscal terms with the energy ministry and GEPetrol for the project in November 2014.

The award for Downstream Project of the Year went to the Bioko Oil Terminal, which is set to become Africa’s largest oil terminal with a final storage capacity of 1.2 mcm.

The Bata Thermal Station was named the Power Generation Project of the year. Construction on the station began in January 2015.

The ongoing domestic effort to combat malaria has been framed under the Bioko Island Malaria Control Project, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2014 and received the award for Corporate Social Responsibility Project of the Year.

One of The Oil & Gas Year Equatorial Guinea 2015’s most compelling chapters, the Year’s Focus, is dedicated to the country’s path to downstream diversification. Through interviews with ministry members and  company executives, as well as detailed project highlights, this chapter discusses the approach Equatorial Guinea is taking to become a regional energy trade centre.

For news and features on Equatorial Guinea, click here. 

The Oil & Gas Year organised its first Strategic Roundtable in Jakarta at The Energy & Mines Society, Bimasena. The roundtable was organised with the support of SKK Migas on the theme: “A Year of Joko Widodo’s Administration for Indonesia’s Oil & Gas Industry: Challenges, Prospects and Expectations.”

The discussions focused on the strategic importance of the year 2016 for Indonesia’s oil and gas industry, in light of the various reforms implemented by the Jokowi administration over the past year and the remaining issues and challenges impacting the sector.

The participants included Amien Sunaryadi, SKK Migas chairman; Ari Soemarno, president commissioner of Samudra Energy and former president director of state-owned Pertamina; Craig Stewart, president of the Indonesian Petroleum Association and general manager of Ophir Indonesia; Lukman Mahfoedz, president director and CEO of PT Medco Energi Internasional; and Ratih Nawangsari, managing partner at Oentoeng Surya and Partners.

The roundtable concluded that Indonesia’s unstable regulatory regime remains an inhibitor to investments in the oil and gas sector, especially amidst lowering oil and gas prices. However government to address issues such as expiry of production sharing contracts were recognised as a significant boon to the industry. The alignment of the new authorities governing the energy industries was also hailed as a positive sign of a developing industry.

For more coverage of Indonesia’s oil and gas industry click here.

The Oil & Gas Year Mexico 2015 places special focus on Mexico’s historic energy law that opens up the country’s energy industry to international investments and analyses the national oil monopoly Pemex’s transformation into a slimmed down 21st century competitor, among other topics.

The Oil & Gas Year is published by Wildcat International, with its fourth edition in Mexico produced in collaboration with Pemex, the Secretariat of Energy and the Association of the Mexican Petroleum Industry.

The Director General of Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), Enrique Ochoa Reza was the keynote speaker at the launch of the book.

At the ceremony, the team of The Oil & Gas Year distributed six awards. Ochoa was selected as the Person of the Year for his commitment to a more efficient energy sector and transforming the CFE into a new electricity institution that for the first time competes in an open marketplace.

Established in January 2014, the Pemex Office of Corporate Procurement was presented with the Corporate Entity of the Year award for it’s critical role in streamlining the national oil company’s purchasing lines.

For becoming the first independent exploration and production company in Mexico in September 2014, Sierra Oil and Gas received the Newcomer of the Year award.

The International Services Company of the Year award was presented to leading technology supplier Schlumberger for compiling Mexico’s National Data Repository and setting up the data rooms for the country’s historic Round One tender.

Mexican player Diavaz DEP, the exploration and production arm of Grupo Diavaz, was awarded the Domestic Services Company of the Year for being one of the most active services companies in Mexico with ambitions to become a fully independent operator through the Round One tender in 2015.

Another Mexican company Perforadora Mexico, the drilling subsidiary of conglomerate Grupo Mexico, received the Onshore Contractor of the Year award as Pemex’s most active contractor in Mexican waters.

One of The Oil & Gas Year, Mexico 2015’s most exciting chapters, Year’s Focus, is dedicated to the critical role Pemex will have to play as a reformed national oil company.

Through the comments of Pemex CEO Emilio Lozoya Austin and other company executives, this chapter aims to bring light to Pemex’s strategy to compete with international oil companies on an equal basis, invest in fields which previously were not profitable for lack of technology and provide for the training of petroleum engineers.

For news and features from Mexico click here

The National Gas Company’s Vice President for Transmission and Distribution Tickaram Roopchansingh and Energy Chamber President Thackwray Driver were the keynote speakers at the event.
The Oil & Gas Year Trinidad & Tobago 2015 was published by Wildcat International and produced in collaboration with The Energy Chamber of Trinidad & Tobago.
At the ceremony, the team of The Oil & Gas Year distributed six awards. Trinidad’s National Gas Company was presented with an award to commemorate the company’s 40 Years of Industry Leadership in the purchase, sale, transmission and distribution of natural gas in the country. For its ambitious investment plan to execute a 20,000-square-kilometre 3D-seismic survey in deepwater acreages off Trinidad and Tobago, UK-Australian operator BHP Billiton was awarded the Offshore Activity of the Year, while Touchstone Exploration (Trinidad) was given the Acquisition of the Year for obtaining an operational licence for the Ortoire block in southeastern Trinidad in November 2014. The Institutional Initiative of the Year was presented to Trinidad and Tobago’s EITI Secretariat for its role in overseeing the country’s journey to become compli- ant with the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative standard in January 2015. Finally, UK upstream company LGO Energy was awarded the Upstream Development of the Year for its robust development programme rolled out for the Goudron oilfield, which achieved production of around 2,000 barrels of oil per day in April 2015.
One of The Oil & Gas Year Trinidad & Tobago 2015’s most exciting chapters, Year’s Focus, is dedicated to the role of independent oil producers in channelling significant energy returns back to Trinidad and Tobago’s vital industries and enhancing the country’s production levels.

For news and features from Trinidad & Tobago click here