Guardians of the Golden Coast

They knew everything there is to know about rocks. Twenty years had passed since the rocks had been removed to forge a new path, but they were still the oldest records of the Emirates’ history.

Through a rock’s layer, geologists were able to determine the location of a riverbed, swamp, or desert. When they had all been removed,  the elderly could only resort to their memories as artifacts of the area’s history.

Abu Dhabi city used to be a mere strip of randomly scattered houses built from palm tree leaves, with a few stone houses in the background. All of it lay in the shadow of the ruler’s palace,  which was called Qasr Al Hosn.

Liwa’s villages migrated to join the pearl divers’ fleets. Bani Yas emerged as the strongest tribal gathering in the area, thanks to the accomplishments of Shaikh Zayed the Great.

Shaikh Shakhbut was eager to discover oil, telling the oil company’s men that it had been seen in the sea but that the supply of tar had run out on the coast.

Hearing of the accomplishments of New Zealand’s pioneering mining engineer, Frank Holmes, who had made a name for himself  by drilling water wells in Bahrain, Shaikh Shakhbut was quick to agree to the political delegate’s suggestion of a water survey.

Despite this, gravity surveys were carried out in Abu Dhabi by the 1950s using advanced vehicles, such as Dodge Power Wagons equipped with special tires.

The few drilling rigs that had been set up on the Trucial Coast presented job opportunities for locals. In February 1950, Petroleum Development  (Trucial Coast) dug the first exploration well in Ra’s Sadr, but the findings were not encouraging.

Based on the surveys conducted, a decision was made to dig the first exploration well in an old pearl diving location named Umm Al Sheif. Plans were drawn to build a base in Das Island and add helicopter service for transport and supplies.

The island was soon transformed from barren lands without water or a population into a vibrant center of activity for the oil company.

On the other hand, the activation of offshore oil concessions in Dubai was slow. After a hiatus of many years, oil was discovered in 1966 in the Fateh Oil Field. This was followed by the discovery of other oil fields, enabling Dubai to finance new large-scale projects.

In 1974, the offshore oil field ‘Mubarek’ was discovered, making Sharjah the third producer of oil in the UAE.

In May 1960, when all hopes to find onshore oil had evaporated, ‘Murban 3’ was discovered. After testing, its oil was proven to be of good quality...

...flowing heavily from a reservoir that was later confirmed to be huge, the same as the Abu Dhabi Marine Areas Limited (ADMA) offshore oil field.

In 1962, the company followed that with the discovery of a giant oil field in Bu Hasa.

On 25th July 1962, Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) relinquished its other concessions on the coast and became Abu Dhabi Petroleum Company (ADPC). A pipeline was made to transport oil, extending from Murban Bab Oil Field to a port for storage and exports in Jabal Al Dhannah.

On 14^th December 1963, the first shipment of crude oil was exported onboard the oil tanker, ‘Esso Dublin’.

It was not made a fully governmental entity as Shaikh Zayed believed that the country could benefit from the oil companies' experience and avoid difficulties that faced fully governmental organizations in other parts of the Middle East.

ADNOC retained a 60% share of the concessions through Abu Dhabi Petroleum Company (ADPC) and Abu Dhabi Marine Areas Limited (ADMA).

The two companies then became Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations (ADCO) and Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Company (ADMA-APCO), respectively.

In 1977, Zakum Development Company (ZADCO) was established to operate Upper Zakum Oil Field.  The original partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company retained their shares in Abu Dhabi’s oil through a concession that expired in January 2014.