Middle East / Africa
Country profile: United Arab Emirates
| Location: | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia |
| Climate: | desert; cooler in eastern mountains |
| Terrain: | flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast desert wasteland; mountains in east |
| Size: | 83600 sq. km total (Land area: 83600 sq. km ) |
| Population: | 4,621,399 |
| Languages: | Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu |
| Government: | federation with specified powers delegated to the UAE federal government and other powers reserved to member emirates |
| Capital city: | Abu Dhabi |
| Legal system: | based on a dual system of Shari'a and civil courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Currency: | Emirati dirham (AED) |
| Licensing: |
Country profile
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an important oil producer with the fifth largest proven oil reserves in the Middle East. The UAE is a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) since joining in 1967. The emirate of Abu Dhabi is the center of the oil and gas industry, followed by Dubai, Sharjah, and Ras al Khaimah. In 2004, natural gas supplied 64 percent of the country’s total energy consumption, and oil supplied the remaining 36 percent. The UAE is a high-income, stable federation of seven emirates with the second largest Arab economy in the Middle East.
The non-oil sectors grew 18.6 percent in 2006 and have tripled during the last three years. Good relations with Asian trading partners and a growing domestic population have helped diversify the thriving economy. However, the country remains dependent on oil revenue, and the government has announced large oil production capacity increases within the next seven years. Abu Dhabi is the major hydrocarbon and industrial power while Dubai is the trading, financial, and tourist center of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai account for 80 percent of the UAE’s income. Hydrocarbon revenues account for around one-third of the UAE’s GDP, though the non-oil finance and service sectors in Dubai are making the city a favored base for multinational corporations in the Gulf.
Energy production and consumption
| Oil | Gas | |
| Production: | 2 million bbl/day (2006 est.) | 45 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Consumption: | 372,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 39 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Exports: | 2 million bbl/day (2006 est.) | 6 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Imports: | 137,200 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 1 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Reserves: | 97 billion bbl (2007 est.) | 5 trillion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Major fields: |
United Arab Emirates - recent news
| 16 Nov 25 |
UAE: ADNOC Gas delivers best-ever Q3 results, demonstrating resilience and growth in a dynamic market ADNOC Gas and its subsidiaries, a world-class integrated gas processing and sales company, has announced its Q3 2025 results, achieving the highest third quarter net income in its history at $1.34 billion, an 8% increase year-on-year. Year-to-date net income reached $3.99 billion, exceeding market expectations, even as oil prices averaged $71/bbl in the first nine months of 2025 compared to $83/bbl in 2024. |
| 07 Nov 25 |
UAE: ADNOC Gas partners with AIQ and Gecko Robotics to launch pioneering program to transform industrial maintenance ADNOC Gas and its subsidiaries, a world-class integrated gas processing and sales company, has announced a multi-year agreement with AIQ and Gecko Robotics to deploy AI and robotics across its facilities, marking for ADNOC Gas and AIQ a strategic entry into robotics and edge intelligence. |
| 05 Nov 25 |
UAE: ADNOC signs 15-Year, 1 mtpa supply deal with Shell for Ruwais LNG Project ADNOC has announced a 15-year Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Shell International Trading Middle East Limited FZE, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shell, for the delivery of up to 1 million tons per annum (mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG). |
| 03 Nov 25 |
UAE: THREE60 Energy accelerates Middle East growth with acquisition of Total Vision THREE60 Energy, one of the fastest-growing companies in the global energy services sector, has announced a major step in its Middle East growth strategy with the acquisition of Total Vision (TV), a multidisciplinary engineering and project management services provider in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). |
| 28 Oct 25 |
UAE: NMDC Energy’s revenue surges 33% Y-o-Y to AED 13 billion in 9M 2025, with Net Profit Reaching AED 951 million United Arab Emirates-based NMDC Energy has announced solid financial results for the first nine months of 2025, with revenue surging 33% Y-o-Y to AED 13.0 billion and net profit gaining 5% Y-o-Y to AED 951 million, on the back of solid backlog execution across multiple markets. |
United Arab Emirates - more news
Other countries in this region
- Algeria,
- Angola,
- Bahrain,
- Benin,
- Botswana,
- Burundi,
- Cameroon,
- Central Africa Republic,
- Chad,
- Comoros,
- Congo (Brazzaville),
- Congo (Democratic Rep.),
- Cote d'Ivoire,
- Djibouti,
- Egypt,
- Equatorial Guinea,
- Eritrea,
- Ethiopia,
- Gabon,
- Gambia,
- Ghana,
- Guinea (Republic),
- Guinea Bissau,
- Iran,
- Iraq,
- Israel,
- Jordan,
- Kenya,
- Kuwait,
- Lebanon,
- Liberia,
- Libya,
- Madagascar,
- Malawi,
- Mali,
- Mauritania,
- Mauritius,
- Morocco,
- Mozambique,
- Namibia,
- Niger,
- Nigeria,
- Oman,
- Palestine,
- Qatar,
- Rwanda,
- Sao Tome,
- Saudi Arabia,
- Senegal,
- Seychelles,
- Sierra Leone,
- Somalia,
- Somaliland,
- South Africa,
- South Sudan,
- Sudan,
- Syria,
- Tanzania,
- Togo,
- Tunisia,
- Uganda,
- Western Sahara,
- Yemen,
- Zambia,
- Zanzibar,
- Zimbabwe
