The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in a Changing World

The document analyzes the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), highlighting a significant misalignment between its aggressive production expansion plans and the 1.5°C global warming limit. It details how ADNOC is increasingly relying on international equity, bonds, and bank financing, thereby exposing global investors to transition and litigation risks. The brief maps these financial connections across upstream, midstream, and downstream operations and recommends that investors and banks push for greater transparency and a cessation of new fossil fuel infrastructure to mitigate these risks.

• ADNOC's expansion plans are fundamentally incompatible with the 1.5°C warming limit. The company plans to add new fields containing 7.6 BBOE, and it is estimated that 90% of this expansion would need to remain underground to align with the International Energy Agency's 2021 guidance.
• The company has very low performance regarding energy transition and transparency. The World Benchmarking Alliance ranked ADNOC 96th out of 100 leading oil and gas companies due to its lack of Scope 3 emissions targets, absence of a base year for its 2030 emissions intensity target, and failure to commit to stopping oil and gas exploration.
• International investors have significant direct equity exposure through ADNOC's subsidiaries. For example, BlackRock and KKR Global Infrastructure hold a 40% stake in ADNOC Oil Pipelines, and Occidental Petroleum holds a 40% stake in ADNOC Sour Gas.
• Major global commercial banks have provided substantial indirect financing to ADNOC. Between 2016 and 2022, banks including JP Morgan Chase, Citi, Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Morgan Stanley, HSBC, Goldman Sachs, and Bank of China provided over USD 14 billion in financing.
• ADNOC is expanding its global footprint by acquiring assets in foreign jurisdictions, which increases its exposure to climate-based litigation. Recent activities include acquiring a 50% stake in TotalEnergies Egypt, a 30% stake in Azerbaijan's Absheron gas field, and a 24.9% stake in Austria's OMV.
• The UAE economy is highly dependent on ADNOC, with nearly 70% of national government revenues coming from the oil and gas sector. This creates a strong national interest for the UAE to manage a transition to a diversified economy to avoid the risks of political inaction.

APA

Jones, N., Picciariello, A., & Gerasimchuka, I. (2023). The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in a Changing World. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-11/adnoc-navigating-energy-transition-and-safeguarding-investors.pdf

Chicago

Jones, Natalie, Angela Picciariello, and Ivetta Gerasimchuka. The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in a Changing World. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2023. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-11/adnoc-navigating-energy-transition-and-safeguarding-investors.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Jones |first1=Natalie |last2=Picciariello |first2=Angela |last3=Gerasimchuka |first3=Ivetta |title=The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in a Changing World |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=November 2023 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-11/adnoc-navigating-energy-transition-and-safeguarding-investors.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{jones2023abu, author = {Jones, Natalie and Picciariello, Angela and Gerasimchuka, Ivetta}, title = {{The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company in a Changing World}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2023}, month = nov, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2023-11/adnoc-navigating-energy-transition-and-safeguarding-investors.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }