Energy security in volatile times: how the conflict in the Middle East is changing strategies for resilient energy supplies| Live from ADIPEC in Abu Dhabi

The conflict in the Middle East has made energy security the dominant issue at this year’s ADIPEC, the huge global energy conference in Abu Dhabi. In this special episode, recorded live in front of an audience at the event, host Ed Crooks asks what resilience means for a range of countries and sectors around the world, and discusses what companies and governments are doing to secure vital energy supplies. Energy systems were already under strain even before the disruption to exports from the Gulf region, following a series of shocks including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Ed is joined by guests with a diverse set of perspectives. Dannif Danusaputro is director of investment and business development at Pertamina Hulu Energy, the upstream arm of Indonesia’s national oil and gas company Pertamina. Aman Ahmad is a senior vice president and head of business development for Sustainable Technology Solutions at KBR, the engineering group that works on projects from solar plants to nuclear reactors. And Alex Tancock is Chief Executive of InterContinental Energy, which is developing large-scale renewable energy projects to produce green hydrogen and ammonia, and to supply data centres.

Dannif explains the challenge facing Indonesia, which uses about 1.6 million barrels of oil every day, and produces only about 600,000 barrels a day. Securing physical supplies has become a national priority, and his company is focused on diversification and partnerships to develop new resources. Indonesia is also working on the demand side to reduce its reliance on imported oil, including through the electrification of transport. But it can’t rely only on the rise of EVs to keep its economy and society function: it needs to work on the supply as well as the demand for oil.

Aman describes how KBR has had to adapt quickly to help customers in the Middle East keep plants running safely through the crisis. That has meant rethinking spare parts, local supply chains and capacity to repair damaged facilities. It also means reassessing how resilience can be built into plant design right from the start.

Aman highlights one of the most worrying implications of rising natural gas prices: the impact on food supplies. Energy and food security are linked, because ammonia produced from natural gas is essential to fertiliser production. Natural gas remains the first choice while it is cheaper, but Aman is seeing interest in adding green hydrogen units to existing ammonia plants, to diversify their supply sources.

Alex sets out InterContinental’s model of large renewable energy hubs in deserts with strong wind at night and sun by day, giving a capacity factor of 74% before any storage. That allows the company to offer highly reliable power for data centres, round-the-clock power and hydrogen at below $3 per kilogram. The peak of the hydrogen hype cycle is long past, he says. Data centres have killed many hydrogen projects that relied on grid power, because they can pay far more for the same electrons. But despite that, real hydrogen projects are still being delivered at a faster pace than for wind and solar power in the early years of those industries.

The stakes are high. Alex argues the world has underinvested in energy supply and mismanaged policy for at least a decade, and the conflict in the Gulf simply brought forward a crisis that was coming anyway. His expectation, shared by Dannif, is that we may be heading for a decade of higher energy prices driven by supply disruption. That may spur the investment needed to bring prices down again. Ed concludes that we may be only at the beginning of a crisis where the full implications will take a long time to emerge.

This episode of the Energy Gang is brought to you by ADIPEC, the world's largest energy event, which took place in Abu Dhabi from 2-5 November.

As demand rises and global energy markets evolve, ADIPEC 2026 brings together governments, industry, investors and technology leaders to accelerate investment, advance technology and build the partnerships needed to meet today's energy needs while building a more resilient system for tomorrow.

Discover more at adipec.com

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