UAE's ADNOC Awards McDermott Offshore Contract Worth Over $1 Billion

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On August 24, McDermott announced that it had been awarded the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation (EPCI) contract for Package 4 of the Umm Shaif Integrated Gas Cap and Surface Boosting Project by the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). McDermott classified the project under its large contract category exceeding $1 billion, without further disclosing the specific contract value.

Under the contract, McDermott will form a consortium with Qingdao Wuchuan McDermott Marine Engineering Co., Ltd. (QMW) to undertake the full EPCI scope for a new offshore surface boosting facility, including the fabrication and offshore installation of jackets and topside modules, as well as associated modifications to existing facilities at the Umm Shaif oil and gas field. McDermott expects that, upon completion, the new topside module will be one of the heaviest offshore modules in the Middle East.

Project execution will span the UAE and China. Engineering design and project management will be led by McDermott's office in the UAE, while offshore facility fabrication will be carried out at QMW's Qingdao manufacturing yard. According to McDermott, the QMW yard covers approximately 60 hectares and has the capability to fabricate integrated offshore platform decks, onshore and offshore modules, floating LNG modules, and subsea structures, with a maximum annual fabrication throughput of approximately 90,000 tons.

QMW is also the Chinese manufacturing entity directly involved in project execution under this contract. McDermott's Q1 2026 financial documents show that QMW is currently a joint venture with McDermott and Wuhan Wuchuan Investment Holding Co., Ltd. each holding a 50% stake, with business scope covering project management, procurement, engineering design, fabrication, construction, and pre-commissioning of onshore and offshore oil and gas facilities. The description of QMW as being established by entities from the former China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation system together with McDermott reflects historical context; the formal version should accurately adopt the current equity structure.

This award corresponds to ADNOC's ongoing Umm Shaif gas cap development. On July 21, ADNOC made a final investment decision (FID) of $6.2 billion for the project, with participants including TotalEnergies, Eni, and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). The overall development plan is expected to unlock over 600 million standard cubic feet per day of natural gas and associated gas liquids production capacity, with production targeted to come onstream by 2030.

Of the $6.2 billion investment, three EPC contracts related to major offshore infrastructure total approximately $5.1 billion; the project also includes a $365 million drilling and integrated drilling services program for 14 wells, to be executed by ADNOC Drilling using three existing rigs over 18 months. With McDermott securing Package 4, the surface boosting facilities, offshore structure fabrication, and modifications to existing production facilities will now move into the EPCI execution phase.