Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is expected to appoint a new projects director to replace Saleh al-Shamsi who resigned in late-September. His deputy, Khalifa al-Darmaki, is filling the post in an acting capacity.

Abu Dhabi has reached an initial understanding with Dubai to supply gas to Jebel Ali, acting Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources Rakad Bin Salem Bin Rakad said on 14 October. He added that nothing official had so far been signed. ADNOC has issued front-end engineering and design (FEED) tenders for the project.

ADNOC has set up a task force to review its upstream and downstream investment programme, which is expected to delay the $1,800 million Ruwais refinery project. However, contractors do not expect the construction of two condensate processing trains to be affected. Bids for the estimated $200 million-300 million contracts are due in mid-November and mid-December

Bidding is under way for the first major contract on the planned $850 million Ruwais petrochemical project in Abu Dhabi. The client, a joint venture of ADNOC and Copenhagen-based Borealis, is due to tender the ethylene package in the first quarter of 1997. Five licensors will be invited to bid for the contract, which includes technology, the front end engineering and designs, and engineering, procurement and construction.