The Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (Adipec) Awards announced the six winners of innovation and commitment to excellence in energy during a ceremony at the Emirates Palace.

The awards were presented following a rigorous selection process led by Regional Select Jury chairman and chief operating officer of Mubadala, Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi.

Recognised for their pioneering innovation and a commitment to excellence within the regional energy industry, the winners of this year’s prize included Gasco, Kuwait Oil Company, Qatar Shell, Total EP UAE, Petroleum Development Oman and Mariam Abdulla Al-Hendi from Gasco.

The event was hosted by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), on the first day of Adipec.

This year’s awards saw competition with a total of 292 submissions from 22 countries, representing 79 organisations. A total of 18 entries across six categories were shortlisted for the 2013 awards last month, after an initial assessment by a Pipeline Review Committee and a Regional Select Jury comprising experts from the regional oil and gas industry.

Each shortlisted entry was thoroughly screened by a minimum of seven judges at the Regional Select Jury Meeting with the winners selected on the basis of a meticulous three-tier evaluation process.

“Once again, the Adipec Awards are shining a spotlight on the technical and operational know-how needed to accelerate the development of the oil and gas industries.  As energy demand continues to increase across the region, it is essential that we raise the bar for ever-higher standards of human capital development and technological innovation,” said Al Muhairi.

Gasco’s Integrated Gas Development Project (ADMA-OPCO and ADGAS) won the award for Best Gas & Oil project, with the Kuwait Oil Company recognised in the Best Gas & Oil Innovation or Technology category, for its work in the Kuwait Intelligent Digital Field.

The Best Gas & Oil HSE Project or Initiative went to Qatar Shell for its Non-accidental Death Programme at Pearl GTL. The winner of the Best CSR Initiative category was Total EP UAE, for their Al Reyada programme, entitled ‘Connecting Young Leaders: Dialogue With the Future’.

A highlight of this year’s Awards was the addition of two new categories – the ‘Empowerment of Women in Gas and Oil Industry’ Award, which aims to recognise initiatives taken to raise the profile of female gas and oil professionals, and the ‘Young Adipec Engineer’ Award, which celebrates individuals who, with less than four years’ industry experience, have demonstrated great potential as future leaders.

The two categories received more than 60 submissions between them, indicating the increased level of importance being placed on the role of women and young professionals within the industry.

Commenting on the new categories, Al Muhairi said: “The future of the sector rests on the development of the next generation of leadership. Highlighting the contribution of women and young engineers to the industry will help to drive outreach and engagement with two groups who are vital to the long term security of the industry.”

The ‘Empowerment of Women in Gas and Oil Industry’ was received by Intisar Al Kindy on behalf of the Petroleum Development Oman.

“The project is about getting female operators in the field, and it is a pioneering project - the first in Oman. We started with a small group of 15 ladies who completed the first round and they should be in the field now working in operations. I’m delighted that we have made such a positive difference to the lives of these women,” said Al Kindy.

Winner of the ‘Young Adipec Engineer’ award, 25-year-old Mariam Abdulla Al-Hendi, who was commended for her work at Gasco.

Mohammed A Sahoo AlSuwaidi, director, Gas Directorate – Adnoc, chairman – Adipec 2013 Conference, said: “The Awards have been created to establish new industry benchmarks and accelerate the development of the regional industry. All winners should be proud of their outstanding achievements during the year, which has been one of the most competitive we’ve ever seen at Adipec.” – TradeArabia News Service