Whole lotta energy in this room: UAE eyes deeper energy, industrial ties with India

Abu Dhabi: The UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, the first CEPA between the UAE and any country, has given our partnership powerful momentum. Since CEPA was signed, bilateral trade has accelerated to more than $100 bn, demonstrating what can be achieved when two ambitious economies remove barriers, align priorities and create conditions for investment to flow.

But the significance of the relationship extends well beyond trade figures. Few economies are shaping the future of global energy more than India. Already the world's third-largest energy consumer, it's on course to add close to 1 mn barrels a day of refining capacity by 2030, among the largest expansions anywhere.

Within 15 yrs, India's urban population will be near 700 mn, its air travel will grow by roughly 150%, and its data centre capacity is on track to expand 10x, each a powerful new engine of energy demand. For an economy growing this fast, energy security is no longer defined by production alone, but will depend on whether the entire system - from supply and storage to trading and logistics - can keep moving under any conditions. The UAE and India have spent decades building exactly that kind of resilient energy system.


Trade between the two countries has passed $100 bn, and is targeted to double by 2032. India is Abu Dhabi National Oil Company's (ADNOC) No. 1 LNG market, and ADNOC is traditionally India's largest LPG supplier, as well as a trusted source of crude and refined products. In January, following the visit to India of UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, that momentum was carried into India Energy Week in Goa, where ADNOC Gas signed a $3 bn LNG agreement with Hindustan Petroleum, crowning $20 bn of Indian gas deals in recent years.

The partnership runs both ways. Indian companies are investors in our upstream concessions. In 2018, the UAE became the first country to store crude in India's strategic petroleum reserve, placing energy on Indian soil before resilience became an imperative. A partnership this strong is not meant to stand still.

Next phase of the relationship can look forward to 3 areas the two countries can build together:

Strengthen energy-commodity supply chains Backed by a $150 bn investment programme, ADNOC is increasing production capacity to 5 mn barrels a day by 2027. New gas developments in the UAE will unlock supplies equivalent to around one-third of India's current gas consumption, while XRG, ADNOC's international investment arm, is expanding its international gas portfolio across key growth markets.

ADNOC's integrated LNG marketing and trading platform will bring this growing portfolio together, targeting 47 mn t a year of marketable LNG capacity by 2035. The objective is to build greater resilience, flexibility and optionality into systems that underpin India's growth.

Deepen industrial partnerships India's manufacturing ambitions will require secure access to petrochemicals, fertilisers, advanced materials and industrial technologies. Through the UAE's integrated chemicals complex TA'ZIZ, agreements have been signed with India's Sanmar Group to supply more than 3.5 lakh t of PVC feedstocks annually, the first exports of these chemicals from the UAE. Through Fertiglobe, ADNOC can continue to support India's fertiliser production and food security.

Collaborate on energy systems AI, industrial electrification, cooling, advanced manufacturing and mobility will all require substantially more reliable power. This creates opportunities for collaboration across data centres, electricity infra, natural gas, renewables, smart grids and advanced industrial technologies.

The UAE brings more than energy resources. It connects markets, capital, technology, infrastructure and logistics, and can help Indian companies expand across West Asia, Africa and beyond, while continuing to invest alongside Indian partners in industries that will define future growth.

The UAE is ready to build alongside India, not simply as a supplier but as a long-term partner in growth, resilience and innovation. That is the partnership the next era demands.