UAE’s Dr Al Jaber voted CEO of the Year by global chemical industry peers

UAE’s Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber has been named the 2025 Independent Commodity Intelligence Services (ICIS) CEO of the Year.

Dr Al Jaber is the UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and his leadership as President was critical in the country’s successful hosting of the COP28.

Dr Al Jaber is also Managing Director and Group CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Executive Chairman of XRG, Abu Dhabi’s newly established energy investment company.

Dr Al Jaber has led ADNOC since 2016 and helped its transformation into an advanced and progressive international energy company at the forefront of deploying AI and advanced technologies. With XRG, he plays a key role in helping the global surging demand for energy in an AI-enabled world. He has been a driving force behind a pragmatic transformation of the global energy landscape.

Announcing the award, Dean Curtis, CEO of ICIS, commented: “We are delighted to announce this award to the UAE’s Dr Sultan Al Jaber, based on recognition from peers of transformational moves in the global chemical industry, in building significant downstream capabilities from the company’s core strength in crude oil and gas.

“These include the launch of XRG, ADNOC’s international investment arm, which has an ambition to create a top-three global chemicals platform.”

Dr Al Jaber said: “I am deeply honoured to receive the ICIS CEO of the Year Award and sincerely thank my peers for their recognition of the efforts of the UAE and all my colleagues at ADNOC and XRG to help meet the world’s growing demand for energy and chemicals.

“ICIS continues to provide trusted insight and analysis on which our industry relies to make informed business decisions.”

The ICIS CEO of the Year Award is unique in the chemical industry, as the winner is selected by peers based on a vote among industry CEOs in the ICIS Top 40 Power Players – a global ranking of leaders driving the greatest positive impact on their companies and the chemical industry.

In selecting the winner, each of the ICIS Top 40 Power Players was asked to vote for three individuals based on achievements in Innovation (technology, product, business process), Profitability/Shareholder value, Projects, M&A/Portfolio Management, Advocacy and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance).

Previous winners of ICIS CEO Awards include Dow CEO Jim Fitterling (2022), former BASF CEO Martin Brudermuller (2021), Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser (2020), and INEOS Chairman Jim Ratcliffe (2016).