THREE DECADES since its establishment, Adnoc continues to lead the way as one of the world's leading integrated oil companies, its achievements receiving global recognition across the range of disciplines in which it works.

Fully government-owned and controlled and supervised by the UAE's Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC), Adnoc's 30-year development in many ways mirrors the growth of the UAE as a major regional economic force.

From its establishment in November 1971 and its first move into the oil industry by setting up the National Drilling Company (NDC) the following year, Adnoc has navigated a path of steady and sustainable growth in terms of oil and gas production and exports, against a background of increasingly competitive global economic environments.

And in developing its natural resources to meet the demands of UAE industry, Adnoc has earned a reputation fostering policies to minimise environmental impact from its activities.

The culmination of three decades of growth is the Adnoc of today, a lean, dynamic and efficient group of world-class companies operating from the exploration and production of oil and gas to natural gas processing, refining and petrochemicals, maritime transportation and refined products distribution. Adnoc also boasts a number of companies providing exploration and production services such as construction, drilling, port management and marine services.

Adnoc has consistently shown itself capable of adjusting to meet industry and market needs, adopting and adapting technologies in the process.

In developing and utilising technologies for the benefit of the UAE, Adnoc has forged close relationships with some of the world's biggest international oil companies. Today, the company is also pioneering its own solutions by drawing on valuable expertise gained over the years.

Adnoc has also shown itself to be receptive to change. At the end of the 20th century the Group underwent organisational changes to enhance operational efficiency and benefit from competitive advantages.

Upstream, oil exploration continues as the company looks to assess as-yet undiscovered reserves, while production capacities at major existing fields in Abu Dhabi are being maintained and increased using the latest enhanced recovery techniques and drilling technologies.

Adnoc has, since the early days of its existence, been keen to derive maximum value from its natural resources.

It was the first company in the Middle East to convert associated gas into exportable LNG when Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Company Ltd (Adgas) was established as a joint venture in 1973.

Almost 30 years on and Adnoc's commitment to developing its gas resources to meet rapidly rising demand from power producers, desalination plants, petrochemical facilities and upstream gas injection projects, continues apace.

The latest phase of gas developments began in 1996 with the commissioning of the first phase of the Onshore Gas Development project (OGD-I).

In the year 2000, the Asab Gas Development (AGD) project was commissioned, while the second phase of the OGD scheme, known as OGD-II, was commissioned last year.

The gas developments go on. The third phase OGD-III is now being developed to increase gas production by 1.2 billion cu ft per day from Bab Thamama ''F'' reserves, while at Asab, the so-called AGD-II project will see the expansion of the Asab plant by 2007.

Offshore, the Khuff Gas Development is expected to see increased gas production by 2003, according to Adnoc.

In the downstream sector, diversification is now the main thrust, with gas fuelling expansions at Ruwais Refinery - which added two 140,000 bpd condensate splitter units in 2000 as the plant bids to more efficiently meet the requirements of international markets - and the construction of the UAE's first primary petrochemical facility.

Adnoc (60 per cent share) and Borealis (40 per cent) commissioned the $1.2 billion Borouge petrochemical complex late last year and the facility is designed to produce 600,000 tonnes per year (tpy) of ethylene and 450,000 tpy of polyethylene for export markets.

Adnoc is also building on its reputation for first-class human resource development, recently opening a new Petroleum Institute to train UAE nationals in the specific skills necessary to take Abu Dhabi's oil and gas industry into the future.