ADNOC Secures 15-Year LNG Supply Deal with Shell for Ruwais Project

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has signed a 15-year sales and purchase agreement with Shell International Trading Middle East Limited for up to 1 million tons per annum (mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Ruwais LNG project, marking ADNOC’s first long-term LNG deal with Shell and the eighth such offtake agreement for the facility.

The agreement, signed during ADIPEC 2025, converts a prior Heads of Agreement into a definitive deal and brings ADNOC’s total contracted LNG volumes from Ruwais to more than 8 mtpa—over 80% of the project’s 9.6 mtpa capacity—just 16 months after the project’s final investment decision (FID).

The Ruwais LNG project, currently under development in Al Ruwais Industrial City, is set to become the first LNG export terminal in the Middle East and Africa powered entirely by clean energy. Once operational in Q4 2028, it will more than double ADNOC Gas’s existing LNG capacity to roughly 15 mtpa. The plant’s two 4.8 mtpa liquefaction trains will leverage artificial intelligence and advanced technologies to improve safety, efficiency, and emissions performance.

The deal with Shell, which holds a 10% stake in the Ruwais project through its subsidiary Shell Overseas Holdings Limited, underscores ADNOC’s rapid progress in commercializing Ruwais and its commitment to expanding its lower-carbon LNG portfolio. The speed with which ADNOC has secured long-term offtake commitments—achieving in just over a year what typically takes several years for large-scale projects—sets a new industry benchmark.

For Shell, the agreement strengthens a strategic partnership with ADNOC that spans more than half a century and supports its efforts to grow its LNG trading and marketing business amid tightening global gas supplies and rising demand for lower-carbon energy sources.

The Ruwais facility’s low-carbon profile aligns with ADNOC’s broader decarbonization strategy and the UAE’s national push to position itself as a leading global supplier of cleaner energy. The deal also highlights the growing importance of long-term LNG contracts as buyers seek supply security in an increasingly volatile global energy market.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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