Abu Dhabi - The Supreme Petroleum Council.

The SPC is in charge of the hydrocarbon sector in Abu Dhabi. Chaired by Crown Prince Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed, the council consists of key members of the ruling Al Nahyan family, UAE Oil Minister Nasseri, representatives of the local Finance Department and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and the CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC) who is the SPC secretary-general. Abu Dhabi's ruler and UAE President, Shaikh Zayed, while not involved in the SPC, retains final authority over important decisions. ADNOC initiates most of the decisions or projects, which must be approved by the SPC. ADNOC was restructured in October 1998 (see following pages). Unlike other GCC rulers, Shaikh Zayed heads a federation of seven emirates (the UAE). So his decisions must be based not only on what is best for Abu Dhabi but for the UAE as a whole. At the same time, like other GCC rulers, he must consider the subtle internal politics of the ruling family and leading Abu Dhabian clans, which makes his task very complicated. Decreed on June 5, 1988 by Shaikh Zayed, the SPC is also known as the Higher Council for Petroleum. Its creation was preceded by the restructuring of ADNOC, aimed at making it more efficient. That involved the abolition of both the Petroleum Department (local oil ministry) and the ADNOC board of directors. By eliminating both bodies, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed and his close aides ended a long power struggle between Dr. Mana Said Al Otaiba, who until then was chairman of the Petroleum Department, and Shaikh Tahnoun Bin Mohammed, Shaikh Zayed's most powerful cousin who until then was chairman of ADNOC's board of directors. Empowered to decide on all matters related to the hydrocarbon sector, including related operations by ADIA and its subsidiaries, SPC's first membership was drawn mainly from the dissolved boards of ADNOC and the Petroleum Department. The key figures in the 12-member SPC now are in the following order of importance: 1. Crown Prince Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed, who chairs the SPC as well as the emirate's Executive Council (local government) and other institutions. 2. ADNOC ex-chairman Shaikh Tahnoun, who is deputy chairman of the SPC as well as the governor of the Eastern Province whose capital is Al Ain. 3. Shaikh Zayed's top advisor and representative Ahmad Bin Khalifa Al Suwaidi, who attends the most important SPC meetings. 4. ADIA's chairman and head of the Finance Department Mohammed Habroush Al Suwaidi, who is less powerful than he used to be before the BCCI scandal of 1991. 5. ADNOC's Managing Director and SPC Secretary General Yusuf Bin Omeir Bin Yusuf, who built up his career at ADIA as in the case of UAE Oil Minister Nasseri and other officials in Abu Dhabi. The other members include UAE Deputy Premier Shaikh Sultan Bin Zayed, UAE's Chief of Staff Shaikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, and UAE's Oil Minister Nasseri. Generally, SPC decisions are balanced between proposals made by ADNOC or the crown prince's office and amendments or objections by ADIA.