As one of the world’s largest sour gas mega-projects continues to take shape in the waters of the Arabian Gulf, two energy heavyweights, Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Public Company (PTTEP) and Italy’s Eni, have pooled their stakes in Abu Dhabi’s massive Ghasha concession, carving out a newly minted joint venture (JV) called Seela Energies to unlock financing, share deep technical expertise, and scale up their activities for the long haul.
PTTEP MENA, PTTEP’s wholly owned subsidiary, together with Eni Abu Dhabi, has established Seela Energies, with each company holding a 50% shareholding. Each of the founders holds a 10% participating interest in the Ghasha concession project, which will now be transferred to the newly formed JV.
As a result, the duo will hold an indirect 10% interest in the project. According to PTTEP, all required regulatory, governmental, and partner approvals have been obtained, and all conditions precedent have been fulfilled.
“The establishment of Seela Energies strengthens the collaboration between PTTEP and Eni, enhances access to financing, builds capability, shares expertise and supports potential future mutual growth in Middle East region, in line with PTTEP’s strategy to deliver long-term value through strategic partnerships,” emphasized the Thai player.
The Ghasha concession offshore Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, which is operated by the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), is expected to produce more than 1.8 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day and 150,000 barrels of oil and condensate per day over the long term.
This concession is considered to be one of the world's largest sulfur-rich gas development projects and a cornerstone of the UAE's strategy to achieve gas self-sufficiency and support rising international export demand.
The development concept encompasses multiple fields, including Hail and Ghasha, located in shallow waters. This project utilizes a series of artificial islands rather than traditional platforms to drill and manage operations while minimizing environmental disturbance.
The Hail and Ghasha project, designed with an emphasis on low-emissions technology, aims to operate with net-zero carbon emissions by integrating carbon capture with a target of around 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year, low-carbon hydrogen use to replace fuel gas, and relying on less-emission-intensive power sources, such as nuclear and solar.
ADNOC’s partners in the Ghasha concession, aside from Eni and PTTEP, which consolidated their joint stakes under Seela Energies, involved other companies across the broader project lifecycle, including Wintershall Dea, OMV, and Lukoil.
The Ghasha development is envisioned to employ smart technology across all operations, allowing operators, technicians, and site personnel remote access to the project’s operations. Aside from a fully unmanned facility, ADNOC has set its sights on artificial intelligence (AI), such as predictive maintenance, for all critical rotating equipment.
A few months ago, the operator, in partnership with Eni and PTTEP, put into place a structured financing transaction of up to $11 billion (AED 40.4 billion) for Hail and Ghasha sour gas development.
The UAE giant’s financing model follows a series of midstream and infrastructure transactions, including a $4.9 billion (AED 18 billion) oil pipeline partnership and a $10.1 billion (AED 37.1 billion) gas pipeline agreement.
It also comes after build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) projects, such as the $3.8 billion (AED 14 billion) project to power and decarbonize offshore operations and the $2.2 billion (AED 8.3 billion) project to deliver sustainable water supplies to onshore operations.