Africa’s largest oil and gas event, Africa Oil Week (AOW), will, for the first time, be held in Dubai, UAE, from 8th-11th November, 2021, at Madinat Jumeirah.
AOW was originally scheduled for 1th-5th November in Cape Town, South Africa.
However, a release by the organisers explained that they have to change location and dates after a careful evaluation of the government’s guidelines and consultation with customers.
“Delivering the event to the high standard to which our audience is accustomed and ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our attendees has always been our top priority. We believe that hosting the 2021 edition in Dubai will enable us ensure that the event experience is both safe and premium for our customers,’’ the statement said.
According to the event organisers, though they are disappointed for not being able to host the event in its natural home of Cape Town, they said: “We believe that Dubai is the next best location. The United Arab Emirates has demonstrated exceptional progress in its vaccination programme and has also led the way in safely reopening international large-scale events– hosting its first ‘in-person’ event post-lockdown as early as July last year and more recently, played host to large-scale, highly-successful events that attracted business travellers from more than 150 countries, increasing business confidence and accelerating the revival of all major sectors in the country. As such, in order to allow our customers ample time to make travel arrangements, we have made the decision to move dates and location – we are confident that Dubai will be a safe and highly desirable destination to host Africa Oil Week’s 27th edition.”
The organisers argue that although the event’s location might be different this year, “our purpose remains the same–Africa Oil Week will continue to be the must-attended event with Africa at its core, a platform dedicated to fostering relationships and driving transactions across the African upstream. We are honoured to have the continued support from our customers regarding this decision to host the event in Dubai in 2021, including Total, Chevron, Tullow Oil, Eni, PGS and Fugro.
“We are also delighted to confirm the support from the leading Ministers of Energy from across Africa for the 27th edition, confirming Africa Oil Week’s position as the event shaping the future of Africa. The event will return to Cape Town, South Africa in 2022.
“AOW will take place in accordance with the latest health & safety and government guidance. We are looking forward to running the live event, reuniting the industry under the ‘Succeeding in a Changed Market’ theme, as well as provide the leading platform to help rebuild the future of oil and gas in Africa,” the statement concluded.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
