Adipec to start next week amid Covid-19 challenges for the energy industry

Oil ministers from UAE, Saudi Arabia, Russia and India to speak during the four-day online event

Speakers at Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (Adipec), being held online from November 9 to 12, include Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Group Chief Executive of Adnoc, will also speak. Courtesy: Adnoc

Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, will speak at Adipec. Victor Besa / The National

Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa, Bahrain's Minister of Oil, will speak at Adipec. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Jordan's Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Hala Zawati, will speak at Adipec. AFP

Dharmendra Pradhan, India's minister of petroleum, natural gas and steel, will speak at Adipec. Bloomberg

Graham Stuart, Minister for Exports for the United Kingdom, is also set to speak. Courtesy Adnoc

Khairy Abdel Rahman, Sudan's Acting Minister of Energy and Mining, is scheduled to speak. Courtesy Adnoc

Arifin Tasrif, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia, is on the agenda also. Courtesy Adnoc

Ihsan Ismaael, Minister of Energy and Minister of Oil for Iraq, will also speak. Courtesy Adnoc

Tarek El Molla, Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, is also a confirmed speaker. Victor Besa / The National

Timipre Sylva, Nigeria's Minister for state on Petroleum Resources (right), is set to speak. Pawan Singh / The National

Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines, Industry, and Energy, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is on the Adipec agenda. (Pawan Singh / The National)

Alexander Novak, Russia's energy minister, is scheduled to speak at Adipec. Bloomberg

Francis Fannon, assistant secretary, Bureau of Energy Resources, US Department of State, is a speaker.  Victor Besa / The National

Mohammad Barkindo, Secretary General, OPEC, is set to speak. Victor Besa / The National

Hiroshi Kajiyama, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, is on the agenda. Bloomberg

Supattanapong Punmeechaow, Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, is also set to speak at Adipec. Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (Adipec), the emirate’s flagship energy industry event, will begin next week amid challenges for the energy industry due to Covid-19.

The theme of this year's event, which will be held online from November 9 to 12, will be Examining the Oil and Gas Industry's Response to Unparalleled Change. It will address current energy market dynamics and the implications Covid-19 has on energy transition.

Adipec will have more than 700 speakers participating in 135 online sessions over four days that will include energy ministers and top executives from major global oil companies.

Ministers speaking at the four-day event include Dr Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Adnoc Group chief executive, Suhail Al Mazrouei, UAE Minister of Energy and Infrastructure and Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Energy.

Russia’s Minister of Energy Alexander Novak, India’s Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and Tarek El Molla, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum Resources and Minerals, will be among the other key government figures speaking at the event.

“Over the past three decades, Adipec has evolved to become the world’s pre-eminent gathering of the oil and gas industry, setting the agenda of the global energy conversation and placing Abu Dhabi and the UAE at its centre. This year’s virtual edition is no different," Omar Suwaina Al Suwaidi, chairman of Adipec, said on Tuesday.

The event "provides a timely opportunity for the industry to discuss practical solutions on how we can strengthen our resilience to enable long-term and sustainable value as we continue responding to the Covid-19 situation and adjust to a fast-evolving energy landscape," he added.

Adipec is taking place as oil prices trade lower on concerns of weaker demand due to rising coronavirus cases across the globe and higher oil inventories. Increasing oil production from Libya, an Opec+ member and home to Africa’s largest crude reserves, has also weighed on prices, which have slipped close to five-month lows.

Prices rebounded after a slow start on Tuesday, though with international crude benchmark Brent moving back above $40 per barrel. It was trading 3.13 per cent higher at $40.19 at 4.30pm UAE time on Tuesday, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate was up 3.37 per cent at $38.05.

Opec+, the producer alliance led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, agreed to historic curbs of 9.7 million bpd between May and July, after the pandemic-induced mobility restrictions forced energy demand to plummet to record lows. The group plans to taper cuts and has been holding back 7.7 million bpd from August to help balance demand and supply. Production is set to increase again in January as part of the gradual easing of supply curbs.

Frank Fannon, assistant secretary at the US Department of State's Bureau of Energy Resources and Mohammad Barkindo, secretary-general of Opec, will also speak at the online event.

Chief executives of some of the world’s biggest energy companies, including Total, BP, Eni, Cepsa, Occidental Petroleum, Japan's Inpex Corporation, Trafigura and Wintershall Dea, are also expected to participate.

Following Dr. Al Jaber's opening address, a panel debate on building resilience in the industry will be held featuring energy ministers from Russia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE alongside Opec's secretary-general, Mr Barkindo.