Energy giant ADNOC has introduced an artificial intelligence platform across its fleet of more than 120 drilling rigs in partnership with global technology firm SLB.

The Real-Time Operations Center (RTOC) consolidates live data from both onshore and offshore units into a single digital system. The implementation replaces multiple existing tools and cuts overall engineering effort by 30-40%. As a result, individual engineers can now supervise two to three times as many rigs while maintaining full operational oversight.

The system uses automated dashboards alongside AI insights to process data quickly. Analytics tasks that previously demanded a full day can now be completed in minutes, while reporting cycles that took days are reduced to hours. By tracking real-time metrics, the system identifies operational issues before they escalate. This capability cuts incident response times by 4-12 hours and helps prevent one to two days of rig downtime.

Musabbeh Al Kaabi, ADNOC Upstream CEO, said: “The Real-Time Operations Center creates value across ADNOC’s drilling operations every minute by embedding AI into the heart of our drilling operations, helping our teams make faster, smarter decisions at scale. Built securely here in the UAE, it is further proof that ADNOC is moving from AI ambition to real-world impact as we become the world’s most AI-enabled energy company.”

Powered by SLB’s DrillOps intelligent well delivery solutions, the platform provides business and drilling teams with live visibility across the entire rig fleet. Active deployment across ADNOC Drilling’s fleet allows operators ADNOC Onshore and ADNOC Offshore to make quicker decisions and manage asset risks.

Rakesh Jaggi, President, Digital, SLB, said: “DrillOps transforms real-time drilling data into operational intelligence that helps teams make faster, more informed decisions. Deployed within ADNOC’s sovereign cloud environment, the technology provides the scalable digital foundation for AI-enabled workflows across one of the industry’s largest rig fleets and supports the continued progression toward more autonomous operations.”

The technology was built in the UAE and remains hosted within ADNOC’s local cloud framework. Storing critical operational data securely under national jurisdiction supports long-term digital independence and operational security.