Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Abu Dhabi Power Corporation (ADPower) issued a joint tender for a first-of-its-kind project in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region to develop and operate a high-voltage, direct-current (HVDC) subsea transmission system to connect ADNOC’s offshore production facilities to ADPower’s onshore electricity grid.
Proposal requests were sent to international companies with requisite experience to partner on the project.
The capital project will be funded through a special-purpose vehicle jointly owned by ADNOC (30%), ADPower (30%), and the selected developers and investors (40%), and will be executed on a build, own, operate, and transfer basis. Successful bidders, alongside ADNOC and ADPower, will develop and operate the transmission system, with the full project being returned to ADNOC at the end of the transmission agreement.
The transmission system will comprise two independent subsea HVDC transmission links and converter stations that will connect to ADPower’s onshore electricity grid—operated by its subsidiary, Abu Dhabi Transmission and Despatch Company—and provide a total installed capacity of 3,200 MW. Commercial operation is expected in 2025.
Initiated by ADNOC, the project is expected to reduce the carbon footprint of ADNOC’s offshore facilities by up to 30% through ADPower’s onshore power production. It also offers power supply cost optimization potential for ADNOC’s offshore facilities and will drive operational efficiency and system reliability by replacing the existing offshore localized gas turbine generators with diverse, more efficient and environmentally sustainable sources of energy, including renewable and nuclear power.
ADNOC added that the project also offers potential for it to more effectively utilize its rich gas, currently used to power the offshore facilities, for higher-value purposes, allowing it to generate additional revenue for ADNOC and Abu Dhabi.