UAE Pushes to Reduce Reliance on Strait of Hormuz to 'Zero'

The United Arab Emirates (UAE), which suffered significant setbacks due to Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz during the Middle East conflict, is pushing to reduce its reliance on the strait to "zero."

Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, said in an interview with Bloomberg reported on June 17 (local time), "We are moving in a direction to make our reliance on the Strait of Hormuz 'zero,' regardless of whether it is open or not."

He emphasized, "We hope the Strait of Hormuz will reopen soon, and we want it to, but that does not mean we will stop this new plan."

The UAE has historically concentrated its import and export of crude oil and various petroleum products through Khalifa Port, which faces the Persian Gulf, and Jebel Ali Port, considered one of the world's largest container hubs. As a result, the country suffered major damage from Iran's recent blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

The UAE plans to improve and expand the Port of Fujairah and the Port of Khor Fakkan, which are located outside the strait and are not affected by its blockade.

In fact, South Korea's emergency crude oil supply during the early stages of the Middle East conflict was facilitated through these ports.

However, while these ports served as alternative routes, there is an assessment that their handling capacity was insufficient.

Currently, the transport capacity of the pipeline directly connecting Abu Dhabi's oil fields to the Port of Fujairah is a maximum of 1.5 million barrels per day, which is less than half of the UAE's total oil production.

Minister Al Zeyoudi unveiled plans to extensively expand ports along the Gulf of Oman coast in the east—such as Dibba and Khor Fakkan—which do not require passing through the Strait of Hormuz, and to construct at least one new port.

He also stated that the UAE plans to invest heavily in the construction of railways and road networks, as well as pipelines directly connecting oil fields in the west to these ports.

The UAE has already announced that it will accelerate the construction of a second pipeline to double its crude oil export capacity through the Port of Fujairah, and is currently considering the construction of a third pipeline.

"The direction has already been set," Minister Al Zeyoudi said, adding that they are "conducting a full feasibility study for the implementation."

However, while transporting crude oil or petroleum products to eastern ports via pipelines may be relatively straightforward, experts note that changing transport routes for raw materials such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) or aluminum is much more difficult in terms of cost and time.

Bloomberg pointed out that it will not be an easy task for the UAE to reduce its reliance on the Strait of Hormuz.

While crude oil and petroleum products can be sent to eastern ports via pipelines, changing the transport routes for raw materials like LNG or aluminum is much more complicated.

Minister Al Zeyoudi said, "Expanding the rail network will help mitigate logistics costs," adding that "Jebel Ali and Khalifa ports will still maintain their roles as resupply hubs."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.