Shell, Total, BP take stakes in UAE gas project

DUBAI — Energy majors TotalEnergies, Shell and BP will each take a 10 per cent stake in a liquefied natural gas project in the United Arab Emirates, state energy giant ADNOC said on Wednesday.

Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co. will also acquire 10 per cent of the Ruwais LNG plant, scheduled to come online in 2028, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) said.

ADNOC, the UAE's key revenue-earner, will retain a 60 per cent majority stake, the firm said following a signing ceremony.

The Ruwais plant, currently under development in Abu Dhabi, is expected to produce about 9.6 million metric tonnes per annum (mtpa), ADNOC said, more than doubling the company's LNG production capacity in the UAE.

Ruwais, which will run on nuclear power, will be "one of the world's lowest carbon-intensive LNG facilities", said ADNOC Chief Executive Sultan Al Jaber.

ADNOC also said it has signed "several" long-term LNG sales agreements with international partners, including for one mtpa with Shell and 0.6mtpa with Mitsui & Co., taking Ruwais's committed production capacity to 70 per cent.

Gas is being touted as cleaner than other fossil fuels as countries around the world strive to reduce their emissions and slow global warming.

Demand for gas spiked following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with several Gulf countries looking to boost output.

Qatar this year announced new plans to expand output from the world's biggest natural gas field, saying it will boost capacity to 142 million tonnes per year before 2030.