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* ADCO fields producing 1.6 mln bpd, aim to produce 1.8 mlnin 2 years -minister
* Abu Dhabi mulling bringing in big Asian buyers into ADCOconcession
* Ruwais refinery expansion to be completed by end-2014
By Nidhi Verma
NEW DELHI, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi has received stronginterest from international firms for participating in itslargest oilfields, the UAE oil minister said, as it weighscontinuing previous partnerships with Western oil giants orletting big Asian buyers take stakes.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) took full control ofthe biggest oilfields in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when itsdecades-old venture with four of the world's largest oilcompanies ended on January 11.
Under the concession arrangement, ADNOC held a 60 percentcontrolling stake in the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore OilOperations (ADCO) oilfields, while ExxonMobil, RoyalDutch Shell, Total and BP, each held9.5 percent stakes.
Several companies, including those whose participation inthe concession have expired are interested in joining theproject with revised terms, UAE's oil minister Suhail binMohammed al-Mazroui told reporters.
"Most of the existing partners are involved and expressedkeen interest to participate," he said.
"There was a criteria that ADNOC announced. This was basedon technology because the challenges moving forward aredifferent than the challenges we had when we started," theminister, who is in New Delhi to attend industry event Petrotech2014, said.
Abu Dhabi is the capital of the UAE, which is a member ofthe Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). UAE'sconcession system allows oil and gas producers to acquire equityin hydrocarbon resources. ADCO's output is about 1.6 millionbarrels per day (bpd).
The western oil majors have partnered Abu Dhabi sincedecades but several Asian energy companies are keen to takestakes in fields that mostly supply oil to the Asian market.These would offer a chance for UAE to strengthen political tieswith its biggest oil buyers such as China, Korea and Japan.
The minister, however, said that western companies haveagreed to continue working with ADNOC until new contracts arefinalised.
"There is an arrangement between us and those companies tocontinue until we finalise the contract. Now, ADNOC isresponsible for sale of all of the crude," he said.
WELL-SUPPLIED MARKETS
The Gulf nation has the capacity to produce 3 millionbarrels per day (bpd) and is currently producing 2.8 millionbpd.
"Our production goes up and down depending on the marketdemand. Priority is market should be well supplied of the OPECcrude and UAE is doing its role in that context," al-Mazrouisaid.
ADNOC aims to raise output from its largest onshoreoilfields to 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) in two years asthe country aims for a 3.5 million bpd export capacity by 2017,he said.
ADNOC has a term contract to supply 230,000 bpd to Indianrefiners but actual purchases go up to as high as 280,000 bpd asthese companies also purchase from the spot market.
"As some members of OPEC like Libya and Iraq areexperiencing difficulties, so we are producing as much as we canto ensure that markets are well-supplied," he added.
The minister also said that the expansion of Ruwais refineryof Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Co (Takreer) will be completed byend-2014. The expansion was earlier planned to be completed inthe first quarter of 2014.
The minister did not specify the reasons for the delay. TheRuwais refinery has a capacity of 415,000 bpd and expansion workis underway to more than double it. The new refinery wouldprocess Abu Dhabi's Murban crude oil grade.
