HH Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed inaugurates ADIPEC 2006

Several high-ranking sheikhs, oil ministers, dignitaries and members of the senior executive management from some of the world's leading oil and gas companies were in attendance at the event.

ADIPEC 2006 is being held November 5 - 8, 2006 at the Abu Dhabi International Exhibition Centre. 1250 exhibitors from 51 countries, more than 2000 conference delegates and national pavilions from 15 countries are participating at this global oil and gas show.

Speaking at the inauguration, HE Mohamed Bin Dhaen Al Hamli, UAE Minister of Energy noted that ADIPEC 2006 was taking place at a time when the world's oil & gas industry was being confronted by significant challenges. These challenges he said have resulted in the reduction in the price of oil to less than US $60 per barrel after reaching US $78.47 in the middle of July 2006.

"The supply of oil in the world market has affected the prices lately and OPEC members have started production cuts building up to 1.2 million barrels a day in a move aimed at absorbing the surplus," he said.

Al Hamli said that according to estimates, the world demand for oil in 2006 was 84 million barrels per day, an increase of 1 million barrels per day as compared to 2005. This demand is anticipated to grow by a further 1.3 million barrels per day in 2007 marking a 1.5 percent increase compared to 2006, he said.

Stating that fossil fuel would remain the main source of energy during the first half of this century, Al Hamli said that the steady growth of the population and economic growth will continue to affect the demand for oil.

Elaborating on the challenges that needed to be responded to in order to address oil demand, Al Hamli said that there needed to be a commitment to protecting the security of oil supplies and a willingness to invest in developing capabilities in oil production and refining.

"There has been talk about huge investments being made to develop alternative energy resources, enhancement of efficiencies in consumption and that the oil era is about to end. On the other hand, there is a continued development of oil fields and new techniques to raise oil production. These have been important reasons for the growth in hydrocarbon reserves," said Al Hamli, noting that worldwide oil reserves were currently estimated at 1154 billion barrels.

Ali Rashid Al Jarwan, ADIPEC Conference Chairman, who also addressed the ADIPEC 2006 inaugural function said that along with the challenges that the industry was facing, is a well-rooted belief for the huge potential for innovation. He also said that the aim of the ADIPEC conference sessions was to open new communication channels by transferring knowledge among researchers, manufacturers, operators and senior managers.

The ADIPEC conference which is being held in parallel with the exhibition will see the presentation of over 150 papers selected from among 500 papers which were originally submitted. Eight discussion forums and several executive panel sessions will be held in which high profile attendees from the oil and gas industry will participate. For the first time, an education day has been added where 70 university students from the region are participating.