ABU DHABI- A local newspaper has said that an AED165 billion investment by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, ADNOC, in the Ruwais refinery will change the company into a supplier of petrochemicals and polymers to international markets.

"ADNOC’s strategic move will boost UAE economy," Gulf News wrote in an editorial today, while commenting on ADNOC's recent decision to expand the refinery, located in Al Ruwais, Abu Dhabi.

The oil market has changed substantially since 2014, so it is crucial that oil companies change with it, the paper said, adding, "While it might seem difficult to change the role of an "oil company," ADNOC has found a way to do just that." Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of State and Chief Executive of ADNOC, said he expects demand for these products to double over the next 20 years. "This isn’t just a change in who the company sells to, either. This is a smart strategic move that takes advantage of market dynamics. Now, instead of just exporting oil into a highly competitive and often flooded market, ADNOC will refine its Murban crude into products that are in high demand. This means greater economic stability for the UAE’s oil sector.

Oil demand has risen and fallen over the past 40 years in dramatic fashion with devastating consequences for oil producers. With this decision, the UAE will no longer have to worry that revenue from oil will rest solely on the economic health of other economies.

It is now tapping directly into one of the most dynamic industries in the world," the Dubai-based English language newspaper explained.

"In effect, this investment combined with the company’s decision to keep developing its upstream (oil production) capacities, means that ADNOC will now control the economic benefit from its own products from the oil well to the manufacturer. It has, to use the old phrase, cut out the middle man, which will bring thousands of jobs and an economic boost to the country," the paper concluded.

© Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2018.