ADNOC Takes Final Investment Decision on Ruwais Diyab Unconventional Gas Project

The project is set to produce 345 million standard cubic feet per day of raw gas from 2029 over a 25-year period, with the potential to rise to as much as 1 billion standard cubic feet per day later. The gas will be processed on site and fed into the UAE's gas network through new pipelines. ADNOC said the supply will support domestic demand and industrial growth as well as its LNG export ambitions. The company did not disclose the cost of the development in its announcement.

Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, said Ruwais Diyab is ADNOC's first large-scale unconventional gas development and that the decision marks "an important milestone in unlocking Abu Dhabi's vast gas resources." He said the investment would strengthen the UAE's energy security and support the company's integrated global gas growth strategy.

The Resource Base

According to ADNOC, the UAE holds the world's seventh-largest gas reserves, with 298 trillion standard cubic feet of conventional reserves and 160 trillion standard cubic feet of unconventional resources. Unconventional gas is trapped in tighter rock formations and generally needs more intensive drilling and completion techniques than conventional fields.

ADNOC said the project followed a programme of technical studies, field testing and subsurface analysis, carried out by ADNOC Onshore under a design-build-operate model meant to reduce development risk. It said the development will use AI-enabled drilling and completion technologies alongside integrated project delivery.

The company said the extra supply will strengthen its gas value chain, including the ability of its listed subsidiary ADNOC Gas to meet domestic and international demand. ADNOC described the project as a platform for building a scalable unconventional gas business.

The AI Demand Angle

ADNOC tied the decision directly to rising energy needs from technology. In its statement, the company said it is unlocking more of the country's gas and expanding its LNG portfolio to meet customer needs and to power industrial and AI infrastructure growth.

The announcement came on the same day UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei told an ADIPEC panel the country plans up to AED200 billion in energy investment by 2030, citing AI and data centres as growing sources of demand, and as ADNOC signed a partnership with OpenAI and G42 to deploy frontier AI across its operations.

Why It Matters

Gas is the main fuel for the UAE's power generation, and the country's data centre buildout, including large AI campuses in Abu Dhabi, depends on reliable electricity. A dedicated domestic unconventional gas supply starting in 2029 gives ADNOC more room to serve both local industry and export customers. It also tests whether Abu Dhabi's tight gas resources can be developed at scale on commercial terms.