His Excellency Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO and Executive Chairman of XRG, has been named the winner of the 2025 Independent Commodity Intelligence Services (ICIS) CEO of the Year Award for outstanding achievement.
His Excellency 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.”
Dean Curtis, CEO of ICIS, said: “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.”
Joseph Chang, Global Editor of ICIS Chemical Business, said: “Through its newly launched investment vehicle XRG, ADNOC will also make investments in the energy systems of the future to ensure energy remains a catalyst for sustainable growth and development.”
His Excellency Dr Al Jaber has been CEO and Managing Director of ADNOC since 2016, leading the company’s transformation into an advanced and progressive international energy company at the forefront of deploying AI and advanced technologies. He also serves as Executive Chairman of XRG, ADNOC’s international energy investment company, designed to meet the surging demand for energy in an AI-enabled world.
Among his key contributions, Dr Al Jaber has been a driving force behind a pragmatic transformation of the global energy landscape, championing solutions to meet the rapidly expanding energy demands of artificial intelligence.
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, published in ICIS Chemical Business.
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, as voted on by the ICIS Top 40 Power Players, include Dow CEO Jim Fitterling (2022), former BASF CEO Martin Brudermuller (2021), Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser (2020), and INEOS Chairman Jim Ratcliffe (2016).
