Companies are preparing to submit bids for a contract to develop the Haliba onshore oil fields in Abu Dhabi, according to sources familiar with the project.

Al-Dhafra Petroleum Operations Company, a joint venture of UAE and South Korean companies, invited firms to bid for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract earlier in the year. The bid deadline is 6 November.

Al-Dhafra Petroleum is 60 per cent owned by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), with a 40 per cent stake held by South Korea’s Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) and GS Energy.

The 30-year deal was signed in March 2012, giving Al-Dhafra Petroleum the rights to explore three oil blocks; two onshore and one offshore. It was the first time South Korea – a major customer for UAE crude – took ownership of upstream assets in Abu Dhabi.

The front-end engineering and design (feed) study for the scheme has been completed by France’s Technip. The feed study is thought to cover an oil field development at Area 1 in southeast Abu Dhabi. The work will include bringing commercial production on stream at the Haliba field for the first time.

According to sources, several engineering companies have submitted bids for the project management consultancy (PMC) on the EPC phase of the project. These firms include:

• Amec Foster Wheeler (UK)
• CH2M Hill (US)
• SNC Lavalin (Canada)
• WorleyParsons (Australia)
• Technip (France)

No award has been announced on the PMC contract.

Al-Dhafra Petroleum made its first discovery at the Haliba field in May 2014, after its first appraisal well, Haliba-3, successfully pumped 10,000 barrels a day (b/d). This was extended later that year with 8,000 b/d from a drill test at the Haliba-4 well. The firm estimated at the end of 2014 that the Haliba structure had 100 million barrels of contingent resources.

Since signing the exploration deal, South Korean groups have expanded their presence in the Abu Dhabi upstream oil sector. In May 2015, GS Energy was awarded a 3 per cent stake in Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations (Adco) – the largest crude producer in the UAE and operator of most of the emirate’s onshore fields.