The United Arab Emirates' Adnoc Gas said it would invest over $8 billion to grow its production capacity, just months after the country's departure from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries . The exit freed Abu Dhabi from the cartel's quota restrictions.
Majority owned by state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Adnoc Gas is already one of the world's largest producers of natural gas but it is betting on a substantial growth program to meet rising gas demand, fueled by population growth and power hungry data centers.
The U.A.E., free of OPEC's quotas, is ramping up oil production in a bid to establish itself more prominently as an energy superpower. More oil usually means more gas, which is extracted along with the oil. Adnoc Gas processes the gas and LNG for domestic and international markets.
It is the U. A.E's wider oil-production growth that gives Adnoc Gas the confidence that it will have the volumes and composition of gas it needs, the company's finance chief, Peter Van Driel, said in an interview.
Globally energy companies are investing heavily in natural gas and LNG processing units. The fuel is a cleaner source of energy compared with coal and is witnessing a surge in demand given it is seen as affordable and helpful for energy security. British energy major Shell said in June that it expects global LNG demand to soar to nearly 700 million tons a year by 2050, a roughly 65% rise from 2025 levels.
Adnoc's regional competitor QatarEnergy is investing $30 billion on a liquefied natural gas project.
The U.S. is also establishing itself as the dominant player in the LNG market. The country accounts for close to 60% of continuing LNG liquefaction projects, far ahead of Qatar's 15% in second place, according to the International Energy Agency.
But analysts warn that a spate of new projects could result in a supply glut with the potential to depress prices.
Under plans announced Monday, Adnoc Gas said it would build a new domestic natural gas processing unit at the country's largest natural-gas processing facility, Habshan. It will also build a new gas export facility at Ruwais.
It forms part of the Rich Gas Development project, which Adnoc Gas hopes will drive earnings by giving it access to high-margin gas it can turn into premium products.
The new investment follows the $5 billion it announced in June 2025 under Phase 1 of the project, which focused on debottlenecking constraints across its plants. Combined, Adnoc Gas said it would spend $13.2 billion on the Rich Gas Development project, making it the company's largest capital investment to date.
Adnoc Gas' investments come as its parent company Adnoc targets production of 5 million barrels of oil equivalent a day by 2027, and recently said it plans to tap two huge gas reservoirs at the Umm Shaif and Bab oil fields.
The U.A.E.'s exit from OPEC was seen as a statement of intent aimed at changing the power dynamics of a region where oil production has delivered vast riches, but fueled competition for regional leadership, analysts say. Meanwhile, conflict in the Middle East and the near closure of the Strait of Hormuz have pushed the U.A.E. to invest in alternative export routes and pipelines for its products as it races to increase output.
As it increases the amount of gas it can process and sell, Adnoc Gas raised its earnings target to above $12 billion by 2030 on Monday.
"These strategic investments will significantly expand our natural gas processing and export capacity," said Fatema Al Nuaimi, CEO of Adnoc Gas, noting the company was targeting 60% growth in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization by 2030. The company had previously targeted 40% growth from 2023 to 2029.
The target, however, relies on the situation in the Gulf returning to, and staying, normal, according to Van Driel.
"[The] OPEC exit for Adnoc Gas has been really good news," Van Driel said.
It also gives it access to more associated gas, which is found alongside oil reserves and is higher in natural gas liquids. These can be used to produce ethane, propane and butane.
While the company pursues growth, its second-quarter earnings reflect the risks regional conflicts pose. Also on Monday, Adnoc Gas reported a net income of $665 million, down from $1.39 billion in the same period last year after shipping through Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world's oil and gas flowed before the Iran war began, came to a trickle. For the third quarter, the company guided for net income of up to $800 million.
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