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Adnoc Gas awards $550m of Estidama contracts

15 July 2024

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Adnoc Gas has awarded contracts worth a total of $550m for two engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) packages of its sales gas pipeline network upgrade project, also known as Estidama.

The combined packages four and seven of the Estidama project were awarded to the UAE unit of Oman's Galfar Engineering & Contracting. The value of the contract is understood to be about $295m.

Abu Dhabi’s NMDC Energy has won package six. The value of the contract is $255m, NMDC Energy said in a filing with the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.

The main scope of work on Estidama Package 4+7 involves laying a new pipeline from the Al-Shuwaib pig launcher and pig receiver station in Abu Dhabi to the Sajaa gas facility in the emirate of Sharjah.

The scope also covers building a new gas pipeline between BVS-2/KP28.7 in Abu Dhabi and Dubai’s Margham gas facility, to meet increased demand from Adnoc Gas’ customer Dubai Supply Authority (Dusup).

The EPC scope of work on Estidama Package 6 entails the installation of a 52-inch, 74-kilometre (km) pipeline from Sweihan to Al-Shuwaib in Abu Dhabi, and building two block valve stations.

Adnoc Gas received technical and commercial bids for package six and the combined packages four and seven in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

Contractors submitted technical bids for package six in August 2022 and commercial bids by 21 November of that year.

Contractors submitted technical bids for the combined packages four and seven by 27 March last year, and commercial bids by 9 August.

in late May, MEED reported that Adnoc Gas had asked contractors to extend the validity of their bids for the two packages until 30 June. This was the latest in a series of bid validity extension requests made by the project operator.

Estidama scheme

Adnoc Gas, the natural gas producing and processing subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has made significant progress with the Estidama project, which will enhance Adnoc’s sales gas pipeline network across the UAE. The objective of the scheme is to cater to rising demand for gas from industrial consumers, particularly in the Northern Emirates.

Through the Estidama scheme, Adnoc Gas aims to extend the existing 3,200km pipeline network to over 3,500km, enabling the transportation of higher volumes of natural gas to customers across the UAE.

EPC works on the estimated $2bn-plus Estidama project have been divided into seven packages.

China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering performed the Estidama project’s front-end engineering and design works as part of a contract worth about $6m that Adnoc Gas Processing awarded to the Chinese state-owned firm in October 2020.

MEED reported in December 2021 that Abu Dhabi-based contractor Integrated Specialised General Contracting Company (Iscco) had won package one of the project, which is understood to have a contract value of $18m. Iscco later sub-contracted the detailed engineering works on package one to the Abu Dhabi branch of Sweden-headquartered consultancy Rejlers.

In July 2023, Adnoc Gas awarded the EPC contract for package two, estimated to be worth $720m, to UK-based Petrofac, and package three, valued at $630m, was won by a consortium of NMDC Energy and Lebanon’s CAT Group.

Separately, Adnoc Gas received technical bids from contractors for package five of the Estidama project on 24 June, MEED reported. Package five was previously part of package two but was later split off and tendered as a separate package by Adnoc Gas.

The scope of work on package five involves EPC works to upgrade the Habshan gas processing complex in Abu Dhabi.

MEED also recently reported that contractors were preparing technical bids for package eight of the Estidama scheme, which involves building a new pipeline that will transport gas as feedstock from the Habshan gas processing complex in Abu Dhabi to its upcoming liquefied natural gas terminal in Ruwais. The proposed pipeline will cover about 190km and will be built in two sections.

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Indrajit Sen

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