The Petroleum Institute (PI) is a private engineering school in Sas Al Nakhl, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, focused primarily on petroleum engineering , and funded by several major international oil companies. The goal of the institute is to provide the local oil and gas industry with engineers.
The Institute was established in 2000 by an Emiri decree under the direction of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, ruler of Abu Dhabi and the president of the United Arab Emirates. It is financed and governed by a consortium of five major oil companies: ADNOC, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Total S.A., and Japan Oil Development Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of INPEX.
The PI admitted its first students in the Fall of 2001. At present, over 800 undergraduate male students and 100 female students are studying in one of the following five engineering disciplines: Mechanical Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Petroleum Geosciences Engineering. As of Fall 2010, two new departments have been added: polymer science and material science. The Petroleum Institute also offers graduate level programs.