Reuters quoted a statement issued by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company as saying that its drilling unit has granted Chinese firm Baoji Oilfield Machinery a USD 218 million contract to supply onshore oil rigs.

The National Drilling Company said in the statement that the contract awarded to Baoji is for rigs with an estimated cost of USD 217.8 million.

Baoji is a subsidiary of China's largest oil producer, the China National Petroleum Corporation.

It is worth mentioning that ADNOC is the major oil shipper in the UAE and the world's third largest oil exporter. The UAE plans to increase oil capacity to nearly 3.5 million barrels per day in 2018 from the current 2.8 million barrels per day.

In line with the country's plans, the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations, the onshore division of ADNOC plans to increase its capacity by 200,000 barrels per day in 2012 to 1.6 million barrels per day and by another 200,000 barrels per day by 2016.

(Sourced from Reuters)