Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is “very keen” to expand its investment portfolio in India, especially in the downstream oil and gas sector, Minister of State in the UAE Cabinet and CEO of ADNOC Sultan Al Jaber said in an interview.
“India is a very important market for us from a political, strategic, and of course from an economic and commercial point of view,” Mr. Al Jaber said on the sidelines of Petrotech 2019, India’s flagship oil and gas conference. “India continues to be a very important destination for our business.”
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“But now, we are of the belief that we have to transform our relationship with India from only being an energy supplier to being a strategic long-term partner when it comes to the energy sector,” Mr. Al Jaber added. “We are very much keen and interested in expanding our portfolio of investments in India in the downstream sector.”
He said that Abu Dhabi is going to work hard with India to attract Indian companies to invest in Abu Dhabi in the upstream as well as the downstream space.
“Beyond oil, India is one of the UAE’s top trading partners, with $53 billion in bilateral trade between our countries in 2017, and the UAE’s leadership wishes to expand and deepen the bilateral relationship even further, particularly in the oil, gas and petrochemical sectors where we believe there are mutually beneficial partnership and co-investment opportunities,” Mr. Al Jaber added.
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Regarding the U.S. government’s decision to impose sanctions on countries trading in oil with Iran, Mr. Al Jaber said that the UAE was ready to provide additional supplies to India if and when they are needed.
“As a member of OPEC, the UAE also abides by the organisation’s decisions on output levels,” he said. “India is an important, valued customer and strategic partner to the UAE and as such we stand ready to offer additional supplies, within existing OPEC agreements, whenever they may be needed.”
On the volatility in oil prices, Mr. Al Jaber declined to estimate price levels during 2019, but added that the UAE is committed to working with OPEC and its partners to achieve a “balanced oil market.