Power Letters 2022: Saif Humaid Al Falasi, group CEO, ENOC

2021 was a significant year for the UAE since it began hosting the ‘world’s greatest show’, Expo 2020 Dubai. The country continues to serve as a model for how public and private collaboration has helped address the challenges imposed by the pandemic through resilience and preparedness to stage a world-class event during challenging times. 2021 was also a milestone year with the UAE celebrating its 50 glorious years. The country’s leadership has led and implemented extensive economic diversification efforts that position it as a model nation in driving sustainable growth.

For ENOC, as a leading energy player and the official integrated energy partner of Expo 2020 Dubai, 2021 was a remarkable year. Besides new project launches and introducing new and innovative programmes, our highlight was our participation at the event.

Our team worked continuously to support the UAE and participate in the world-class event that allows us to represent the energy industry at a global scale. Our plan has been to lead as an example in the energy sector on how a retail energy service provider can showcase advances in the sustainable use of energies. Our efforts are aligned with our government’s national goals including the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030 and Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and we will continue to stay committed to fuelling the needs of UAE customers and investing in our country’s infrastructure. We are committed to developing a robust retail infrastructure to serve the UAE for the next 50 years.

The future looks bright: According a recent report by The Economist Intelligence Unit, global energy consumption is expected to rise by 2.2 per cent in 2022, while Fitch Ratings stated that the UAE’s economy is projected to grow 5.8 per cent next year.

From a strategic perspective, three key priorities will drive our business in 2022:
1. Focus efforts and investments in the UAE across all businesses to execute plans efficiently. There are several expansion plans in place and the next five years will see continued growth through our diverse businesses such as the refinery, service station network, and storage capacity; increasing market share of diesel, jet fuel, LPG, and other products; and ensuring high profitability due to our privileged position in the local market.
2. Steady international expansion while developing capabilities to compete in cross-segment projects. A three-point plan envisages the development of integrated downstream value-chain projects to build capabilities for future growth; making integrated rather than solo investments to extract maximum value-chain synergies across our diverse businesses; and exploring further investments across the group.
3. Integration of our energy value chain by creating synergies across upstream, midstream, and downstream businesses. We will be exploring additional upstream growth to balance the value chain and capture opportunities in the low-price market environment.

Our growth strategy will continue to reinforce ENOC’s position in Dubai and globally, and expand the upstream portfolio.