UAE's ADNOC awards $1 bln contract for Ghasha concession

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has awarded a $1.36 billion contract for the construction of the Ghasha concession artificial islands, the oil major said in a statement on Wednesday.

The contract was awarded to the UAE-based National Marine Dredging Company, which will construct 10 new artificial islands and two causeways, as well as expand an existing island, Al Ghaf.

The project is expected to take 38 months to complete and will provide the infrastructure required to further develop, drill and produce gas from the sour gas fields in the Ghasha concession, the statement added.

The Ghasha concession consists of the Hail, Ghasha, Dalma, Nasr and Mubarraz offshore sour gas fields.

ADNOC has recently awarded stakes in the Ghasha concession to Italy’s Eni (25 percent), Germany’s Wintershall (10 percent) and Austria’s OMV (5 percent).

The project is expected to produce over 1.5 billion cubic feet of gas per day when it comes on stream around the middle of the next decade. In addition, more than 120,000 barrels per day of oil and high-value condensates are expected to be produced.