25 October 2026
ADNOC has opened more than AED 60 billion in local manufacturing opportunities to companies in the UAE through 2030, the company announced at the second Make it with ADNOC Forum in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, 25 October 2026. The package covers more than 200 products and a broad portfolio of critical spare parts for drilling, projects and operations, many of which are imported today. ADNOC also changed how suppliers get in: registration that used to take weeks can now be completed within a day, registration and prequalification time is cut by up to 80%, and ADNOC will shorten its own tendering cycles by 40%. From 1 November 2026, bids will be scored 70% on commercial terms and 30% on In-Country Value (ICV).
What ADNOC announced on 25 October
The opportunities were presented by Omar Abdulla Alnuaimi, Group Chief of the Commercial and In-Country Value Executive Function at ADNOC. He said the list was built from ADNOC’s growth ambitions, investment plans and capital programme, to identify what still needs to be made in the UAE for a resilient supply chain. Details of each opportunity were shared with participants through a QR code shown at the forum. The first Make it with ADNOC Forum was held in May 2026.
Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, said: “Every product we can competitively manufacture here strengthens our ability to deliver.” ADNOC links the programme to shorter lead times and lower exposure to global supply disruptions.
What ADNOC wants made in the UAE
The more than 200 products fall into six groups:
- rotating equipment and power;
- electrical, control and automation systems;
- drilling and completion equipment;
- chemicals and catalysts;
- piping, fabrication and heavy equipment;
- spare parts and advanced manufacturing.
In drilling and wells, ADNOC has already localised wellheads and drilling fluids and is now looking at electrical submersible pumps, oil country tubular goods (OCTG), central coolers and seamless pipes. In projects, it wants local production of rotating equipment such as compressors and pumps. For operations and maintenance, it lists electrical components, spare parts, catalysts and chemicals. Alnuaimi said some of the opportunities suit smaller companies as well as large enterprises.
Faster supplier registration and a new ICV model
Salama Al Awadhi, Senior Vice President for Commercial Affairs, Group Local Value and Industrial Development at ADNOC, presented the changes to supplier onboarding and ICV evaluation:
| Area | What changes |
|---|---|
| Supplier registration | can be completed within a day instead of several weeks |
| Registration and prequalification time | cut by up to 80% |
| Required documents | reduced by half |
| Prequalification | removed for 60% of service categories |
| Platform | registration, due diligence and prequalification in one place; a supplier registers once; AI validates uploaded documents |
| Bid evaluation from 1 November 2026 | one blended score, 70% commercial and 30% ICV, replacing the bid-matching model used since 2018 |
| ICV retention | automated: the supplier uploads its ICV certificate and the system calculates the obligation |
Under the previous model, the bidder with the highest ICV score had to match the lowest price. The new weighting is meant to encourage suppliers to submit their most competitive offer from the start. Smaller contracts get exemptions: contracts in the lowest value band are exempt from ICV requirements, and contracts below a higher threshold no longer face ICV retention. The largest projects receive a customised ICV requirement and must come with an ICV improvement plan.
Tenders 40% faster
Adel Al Yafei, Senior Vice President of Group Commercial Operations and Execution, said ADNOC will shorten tendering cycles by 40%. He stressed that this is time saved inside ADNOC’s own process, not time taken from bidders who prepare technical and commercial offers. The rules presented at the forum:
- in EPC tenders the most competitive bid gets priority, and if it meets ADNOC’s benchmark target, ADNOC negotiates only with that bidder;
- unit-rate contracts are negotiated against the market median rather than isolated outlier rates;
- bidding periods are set around market requirements, and suppliers receive feedback after each tender;
- a supplier’s capability to deliver is assessed even if it is bidding with ADNOC for the first time.
In 2026 so far ADNOC has awarded more than 8,000 contracts and purchase requisitions to more than 1,500 partners, as well as 10 mega EPC projects. A separate QR code gives access to the projects it plans to tender in 2027 and 2028, including downhole completion, drilling fluids and cementing services, turnaround inspection services and maintenance of compressors, turbines and pumps.
Local+ and financing partners
ADNOC expanded its Local+ list to more than 100 UAE manufacturers, up from 70 at its launch in May 2026. EPC contractors bidding on new ADNOC projects must source relevant products from approved manufacturers on the list. ADNOC said it is working with the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, Emirates Development Bank and AD Ports to connect manufacturers with industrial support and financing, including through the National Industrial Resilience Fund.
ADNOC’s ICV results since 2018
- more than AED 307 billion redirected into the UAE economy since 2018;
- annual contribution of AED 65 billion in 2025, up from AED 18 billion in 2018;
- 27,500 jobs for Emiratis in the private sector;
- AED 80 billion of the AED 90 billion local manufacturing target for 2030 already reached, with more than 130 localised products and 95 new or expanded factories.
The national ICV programme as a whole has redirected more than AED 473 billion into the UAE economy and created 28,000 jobs for Emiratis, according to the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology. The wider industrial agenda behind these numbers is covered in our article on Make it in the Emirates 2026 and the UAE industrial base.
What it means for manufacturers and suppliers
The announcement combines a published demand list with lower entry barriers. For a company that wants to supply ADNOC or set up production for it, the practical points are:
- compare your product range with the opportunity list and the 2027 and 2028 tender plans shared at the forum;
- production in the UAE needs a licence with an industrial activity, issued in mainland or in an industrial free zone;
- registration on ADNOC’s supplier platform now takes about a day, with half the documents and no prequalification for 60% of service categories;
- from 1 November 2026 the ICV score accounts for 30% of the bid evaluation, so a current ICV certificate directly affects how a bid is ranked;
- products on the Local+ list get priority, because EPC contractors on new ADNOC tenders must buy them from approved local manufacturers.
How Atlant Capital can help
We help foreign and local entrepreneurs set up a company in the UAE with the right activity, jurisdiction and premises, including manufacturing and trading structures that plan to supply large buyers such as ADNOC. Our company setup service in the UAE covers licensing, documents and premises, and our step-by-step guide to company formation in the UAE explains the full process. For an industrial project, our comparison of mainland and free zone companies in the UAE helps to choose where to register.
Conclusion
ADNOC has put more than AED 60 billion of local manufacturing opportunities on the table through 2030, covering more than 200 products and critical spare parts. At the same time it cut supplier registration to about a day, removed prequalification for 60% of service categories, promised 40% shorter tendering cycles and set a 70% commercial and 30% ICV evaluation from 1 November 2026. With AED 80 billion of its AED 90 billion local manufacturing target already reached, the new list is the next step of the same programme.
Source: Gulf News, The National, Khaleej Times.
FAQ
What did ADNOC announce at the Make it with ADNOC Forum 2026?
At the second Make it with ADNOC Forum in Abu Dhabi on 25 October 2026, ADNOC opened more than AED 60 billion in local manufacturing opportunities through 2030, covering more than 200 products and critical spare parts. It also announced faster supplier registration, 40% shorter tendering cycles and a new 70% commercial and 30% ICV bid evaluation from 1 November 2026.
Which products does ADNOC want manufactured in the UAE?
The list covers rotating equipment and power, electrical, control and automation systems, drilling and completion equipment, chemicals and catalysts, piping and heavy equipment, and spare parts. Named examples include electrical submersible pumps, oil country tubular goods, seamless pipes, central coolers, compressors and pumps.
How long does ADNOC supplier registration take now?
ADNOC says supplier registration, which used to take weeks, can now be completed within a day. Registration and prequalification time is cut by up to 80%, required documents are halved, and 60% of service categories no longer need prequalification. Registration, due diligence and prequalification run on one platform.
How will ADNOC evaluate bids from 1 November 2026?
From 1 November 2026, ADNOC scores commercial and ICV offers together: 70% weight on commercial terms and 30% on In-Country Value. This replaces the model used since 2018, in which the bidder with the highest ICV score had to match the lowest price. Smaller contracts are exempt from ICV requirements or ICV retention.
