Fujairah will officially launch its first VLCC berth on 21 September, boosting crude export capacity at the UAE’s only Indian Ocean port. VLCC Berth 1 has already commenced operations according to Wilhelmsen Ships Service, with two vessels scheduled to have used the jetty since 24 August. Construction was completed on schedule in June.
As the UAE’s only crude terminal outside the chokepoint Strait of Hormuz, Fujairah is of considerable geostrategic importance. It is connected to Abu Dhabi’s Habshan onshore oil collection point via a 1.5mn b/d capacity oil pipeline – equivalent to 51% of August’s 2.96mn b/d production – that became operational in 2012. The Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP) was constructed under the auspices of Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund IPIC, currently merging with counterpart Mubadala (MEES, 8 July). A potential expansion to 1.8mn b/d was envisaged, but has yet to be implemented. (CONTINUED - 480 WORDS)
