OMM Newsroom
ADIPEC 2026, described as the world’s largest energy event, opened on Monday in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. The four-day gathering brings together governments and energy companies as global supply faces severe pressure, AnewZ reports.
War in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have disrupted global oil and gas supplies. Energy security and investment are among the event’s main topics.
Sultan Al Jaber, chief executive of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), said at the opening ceremony that the world had exhausted its energy security buffers and that global energy security needed to be rebuilt. Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are depleting oil inventories and sharply increasing shipping costs, he said.
Al Jaber said about one billion barrels of crude oil had been drawn from global inventories since the disruptions began. In some markets, diesel inventories have fallen to their lowest level for this time of year in 35 years, while some markets face a 600 billion cubic feet shortfall in liquefied natural gas supplies.
“Simply put, the world has run down its supply buffers,” Al Jaber said.
He said delivering products had become as important as producing them. Before the disruptions, logistics accounted for less than 5% of the cost of a barrel of oil; that figure now exceeds 30%.
Five UAE priorities
In his opening address, Al Jaber set out five priorities for the energy industry. The first is to increase strategic oil reserves, fuel storage and refining capacity closer to consumers. The second is to invest more in transport and logistics so oil and gas can reach markets even during disruptions.
The third priority is using artificial intelligence to anticipate risks, improve operations and reduce production costs. The fourth is to pursue policies that encourage investment and strengthen the role of banks and insurers in keeping trade resilient.
Al Jaber described the workforce as the most important, fifth priority.
“It is people, not systems, who carry the responsibility,” he said.
ADNOC, OpenAI and G42 partnership
On Monday, ADNOC announced a multiyear partnership with OpenAI and Abu Dhabi-based technology group G42. ADNOC will become the first energy company to deploy OpenAI Frontier, a system that connects AI agents across business units and runs on G42’s infrastructure in the UAE.
The company said the technology would be used in oil-field development, well management and commercial operations. It will help assess the value of oil before it is produced and shorten the time needed to prepare development plans from months to hours.
OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman also addressed the opening ceremony. He said more advanced models could help energy companies work on new materials, turbine designs and operations, adding that AI could benefit the energy sector. Asked about the biggest challenge he faced, he replied with one word: “Energy.” Altman also stressed that people must retain control over the use of the technology.
Exhibitors and discussions
ADIPEC will run through November 5 at ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi. The event is held under the patronage of UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and hosted by ADNOC. Organizers expect more than 239,000 attendees from over 170 countries. A record 2,260 companies are exhibiting, filling all 16 halls.
More than 40 ministers are attending. The programme includes 13 conference tracks and more than 380 sessions, with 1,800 speakers expected. Oil and gas companies BP, Shell, TotalEnergies, Eni, ExxonMobil, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum are represented, alongside Siemens, IBM and Microsoft.
Halliburton is showcasing AI-powered drilling and production tools. Its chairman and chief executive, Jeff Miller, is expected to speak on Tuesday about protecting profits amid volatility. GE Vernova is presenting gas turbines, power-grid modernization and carbon-management technologies. Emerson, Schneider Electric, SLB, Aveva and Honeywell are showcasing automation and digital systems.
A study published ahead of the event found that 76% of Middle Eastern energy executives surveyed had increased investment in autonomous technologies over the past year. Research by ADNOC and Microsoft found that 89% of executives had increased spending on AI, while 81% of senior executives expected AI-related electricity demand to exceed current forecasts.
Energy ministers from the UAE, Germany, Türkiye and Egypt are discussing energy security on Monday. The participants are Suhail Al Mazrouei, Katherina Reiche, Alparslan Bayraktar and Karim Badawi, respectively.
Asia and Azerbaijan represented
Asia has its largest-ever presence at ADIPEC, with 353 companies and six national pavilions from China, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea. Exhibitors include Sinopec, CNPC, CNOOC, CATL, Petronas, INPEX and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, about 90% of the crude oil and condensate that passed through the Strait of Hormuz before the Iran war was bound for Asia.
Azerbaijan is represented in Abu Dhabi by its national oil company, SOCAR. Azerbaijani gas has been delivered to the European Union via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline since it began operating in late 2020, completing the Southern Gas Corridor.
The pipeline transports gas to Italy, Greece and Bulgaria and has delivered more than 60 billion cubic metres to European consumers to date. The head of the corridor’s operator said about 12 billion cubic metres of gas reached the European Union in 2025.
Most of the gas is produced at the Shah Deniz field in the Caspian Sea, operated by BP, with reserves of about one trillion cubic metres. Azerbaijan’s proven gas reserves are estimated at about 2.6 trillion cubic metres, and the country produced 51.5 billion cubic metres of gas in 2025. Oil is produced mainly from the offshore Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli block. Baku has said it wants to increase annual gas exports to Europe to 20 billion cubic metres.
With maritime routes in the Persian Gulf under pressure, gas transported by pipeline from the Caspian Sea is taking on greater importance in Europe’s supply plans. ADIPEC runs through November 5.
