JEDDAH – Saudi Arabia and the UAE are leading the MENA region in terms of spending in oil and gas sector. According to Middle East projects tracker MEED Projects, if contracts are awarded as expected, this quarter could be the biggest-spending period since the final quarter of 2011, with several major projects moving toward the construction phase. Since then, contract awards for each subsequent quarter have hovered between $5 billion and $10 billion, with spending dominated by Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iraq and Iran. Against this backdrop, the UAE Oil and Gas Greenfield Projects Conference will be held on Sept.10-12, 2013 at the Sofitel Hotel in Abu Dhabi. One of the highlights of the conference is a dedicated session reviewing the UAE oil and gas sector's involvement with outward investment, including critical updates on strategies as to how it intends to further diversity its regional projects. Moreover, the 4th Annual Middle East Brownfield Projects Conference will be held on Sept. 9, 2013 at the same venue, where experts will share insights and strategies to rehabilitate aged fields, using modern technologies. These developments mark a critical stage in the UAE's push to expand its offshore output to new fields. Equally important, however, is the country's push to optimize oil production, sustainability and innovation through successful integration of new and expanding projects. “There is an enormous potential for contractors looking to work on rehabilitation, upgrade and modification schemes in the GCC. This clearly defines the Middle East's brownfield market as one of the region's high potential markets. The Middle East Brownfield Projects Conference will focus on specific challenges and opportunities over the next 12 months,” said Edmund O' Sullivan, Chairman, of MEED Events, organizers of the conference, which will gather high level participation from government and semi-government entities, financiers and investors, contractors, project managers and international operators and developers. “One of the key factors that has a significant impact on successful project execution and commissioning is the integration of oil and gas project infrastructure with technology. This conference aims to bring the entire value chain involved in the oil and gas projects sector together to discuss challenges and solutions for new projects in the UAE and the way forward. We hope encourage co-operation within the sector to boost the quality of projects execution,” he noted. The UAE leads the MENA region in value of contracts awarded in the oil and gas sector with Zakum Development Company (ZADCO) awarding a huge $3.7 billion contract on the development of the offshore Upper Zakum field. The contract is more than 50 percent of the total $6.7 billion worth of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) deals awarded so far in the region in the second quarter of 2013. The groundbreaking Upper Zakum Field Development project has a total budget of around $ 15.6 billion. The UAE was likely to award two more major contracts – both on the Umm Al-Lulu offshore oil field development – which combined are worth in excess of $2 billion. The first package on Umm Al-Lulu is set to be awarded to Abu Dhabi's National Petroleum Construction Company (NPCC). The second package is still to be decided after France's Technip and South Korea-based Samsung Engineering were asked to resubmit bids in April. The only other billion-dollar-plus contract in the MENA region so far in the second quarter was Qatar Petroleum (QP) awarding a deal to Taiwan's CTCI and Japan-based Chiyoda Corporation, this was for the $1.2 billion expansion of its Ras Laffan refinery. Preceding this event is a conference that focuses on rehabilitating ageing oil and gas fields throughout the region. For information on how to attend the UAE Oil & Gas Greenfield Projects Conference and the 4th Annual Middle East Brownfield Projects Conference, visit www.uaeoilandgas.meedconferences.com and www.uaehydrocarbonsepc.com, respectively. – SG
