When Khalifa Al Nuaimi, 38, from Ajman, first joined Adnoc Drilling 16 years ago, the company was so small he completed his one-week orientation in less than two days.
And he came to know every one of the division’s employees at its old headquarters, the small building on Salam Street, in no time.
But the company has changed and grown considerably since, moving in 2018 to a new towering headquarters on Abu Dhabi’s Corniche, which looks in the city it helped support all these years.
With about 6,500 employees today, there are many more people than Mr Al Nuaimi could now possibly meet in his role.
“Every day now I am seeing new faces joining,” said the drilling team manager. “So it’s not what we were used to in the old days.”
Adnoc Drilling has also grown to be the largest drilling company in the Middle East by rig fleet size, delivering more than 10,000 wells to date in its 50 years of operations.
The subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) went public in October, floating 11 per cent of its shares on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange in an oversubscribed sale.
And now the company, like the country in which it was founded, is looking ahead to its next 50 years, with Emirati leaders like Mr Al Nuaimi driving its future.
The mechanical engineer was one of the very first graduates to join from the Petroleum Institute. He is now a manager for operations.
“In the same year, we were interviewed and distributed among the Adnoc group of companies. I was selected to be assigned as an assistant rig manager,” he said.
Mr Al Nuaimi admits the title was pretty attractive. But the role at first was nothing like what he expected. He spent years working his way up the rig, starting from the lowest position of roustabout.
“When I went to the field I was really shocked,” he said.
“We had to start from scratch and to do a ‘dirty’ job, working on the ground as a roustabout in order to learn the technical aspects to run the operation.”
He spent between six and nine months in each role, learning the ropes. From roustabout, he became a floorman, manipulating the pipes, moved to derrick man, and then assistant driller.
Eventually, he became assistant rig manager.
The process was not what he expected, but Mr Al Nuaimi said he would not change a thing. He could not do his job now as effectively without the experience he gained in the period.
“It’s difficult to understand the situation sitting in the office without having been at the rig,” he said.
“When the company was established, rarely [did we find] any Emiratis working in such harsh environments.
“Now it has totally changed. You can see Emiratis working in all positions, but at that time in 2006, we rarely found an Emirati working on a drilling rig.
“We have been role models for newcomers.”
Mansoor Alblooshi, 36, was another employee who paved a path for his fellow Emiratis to join the division.
He has now been with the company for 11 years, after joining in April 2010 as an assistant rig manager trainee. He oversees about 500 employees in his role as operations superintendent.
Like Mr Al Nuaimi, he spent almost three years in an intensive training programme. And he climbed the ropes in the same hard way.
“I wasn’t expecting that but it was very interesting for me,” said Mr Alblooshi.
“Actually, when you work in the lowest position on the rig site, it gives you a chance first of all to know what those people are doing.
“Once I finished that part of the training I had a good understanding, a clear vision, a clear picture of how those people were working and what the points were that we could improve and develop.”
Mr Al Nuaimi, Mr Ablooshi and others like them are the future of the company, said Hamad Al Junaibi, a senior executive at Adnoc.
Mr Al Junaibi has worked in drilling for 24 years and has seen a lot of changes since he joined the company.
“When I came here we had 30 rigs,” said the senior vice president of operations for offshore. The company now owns 99 and operates 107.
“And we are going to expand outside the country. We are utilising a lot of artificial intelligence and new technologies in our operation.
“The future is positive. To build this future, we need to invest in our future leaders. And we have tremendous focus on developing our future leaders.”
About 1,200 Emiratis have now passed through training programmes to join the rigs and other roles in the operation.
There is also a strong focus on training on the job.
All employees have development plans and some who show particular promise are fast-tracked to leadership roles.
Shaima Al Ameri, 25, an Emirati from Abu Dhabi, is one of them. She joined the company more than a year ago and is enjoying working with and learning from experienced colleagues as a lab engineer in the drilling and completion fluid division.
Many of them are men, but that too is set to change. And the company has the benefit of an increasing number of female graduates to choose from.
More than half, 56 per cent to be exact, of the UAE's graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (stem) courses at government universities are women.
That compares to only 35 per cent in the UK.
Ms Al Ameri, a chemical engineer, was one of 17 young women who joined the company more than a year ago in an intensive recruiting effort.
It is great to know you will inspire newer generations to join in five or 10 years
Shaima Al Ameri,
Adnoc Drilling
Joining with other women made the transition into work easier.
“You know you are not alone,” she said.
“Thank goodness we are in a team who are really supportive, from supervisors to managers, VPs, they are super supportive.”
And Ms Al Ameri likes the idea that she will help pave a path for more female Emiratis to join.
“It is great to know you will inspire newer generations to join in five or 10 years,” she said.
“Half of my cousins are already choosing their career paths. One of them wants to work in international business. One of them will be a civil engineer.
“It’s really a different generation. If you saw five years ago, no one would have answered this type of question but right now everyone knows where they are going.”
'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore'
Rating: 3/5
Directed by: David Yates
Starring: Mads Mikkelson, Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Jude Law
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
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MATCH INFO
Manchester City 1 (Gundogan 56')
Shakhtar Donetsk 1 (Solomon 69')
How tumultuous protests grew
- A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
- Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved
- Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
- At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
- Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars
- Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
- An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital
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Boston%20Strangler
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Results
2pm: Serve U – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Violent Justice, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
2.30pm: Al Shafar Investment – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,400m; Winner: Desert Wisdom, Bernardo Pinheiro, Ahmed Al Shemaili
3pm: Commercial Bank of Dubai – Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Fawaareq, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
3.30pm: Shadwell – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer
4pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Rakeez, Patrick Cosgrave, Bhupat Seemar
4.30pm: Al Redha Insurance Brokers – Handicap (TB) Dh78,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Capla Crusader, Bernardo Pinheiro, Rashed Bouresly
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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UAE
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Norway
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Canada
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
FIXTURES
Thu Mar 15 – West Indies v Afghanistan, UAE v Scotland
Fri Mar 16 – Ireland v Zimbabwe
Sun Mar 18 – Ireland v Scotland
Mon Mar 19 – West Indies v Zimbabwe
Tue Mar 20 – UAE v Afghanistan
Wed Mar 21 – West Indies v Scotland
Thu Mar 22 – UAE v Zimbabwe
Fri Mar 23 – Ireland v Afghanistan
The top two teams qualify for the World Cup
Classification matches
The top-placed side out of Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong or Nepal will be granted one-day international status. UAE and Scotland have already won ODI status, having qualified for the Super Six.
Thu Mar 15 – Netherlands v Hong Kong, PNG v Nepal
Sat Mar 17 – 7th-8th place playoff, 9th-10th place play-off
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
