UAE, Iraq Move 2 Million Bpd Through Hormuz as Gulf Exporters Rewire Oil Routes
Updated
Updated · Energy Intelligence · Aug 28
UAE, Iraq Move 2 Million Bpd Through Hormuz as Gulf Exporters Rewire Oil Routes
3 articles · Updated · Energy Intelligence · Aug 28
Summary
Around 2 million barrels a day each from the UAE and Iraq crossed Hormuz on Aug. 1-25, putting them ahead of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar as the crisis reshapes Gulf export rankings.
Bypass pipelines, shuttle tankers, ship-to-ship transfers, tenders and discounts are keeping crude moving, shifting the advantage from production capacity to control over logistics.
The UAE has paired its Fujairah pipeline with a large tanker fleet to run barrels through Hormuz to waiting ships outside the Gulf, and Iraq has copied that shuttle model despite repeated attacks on UAE-linked vessels.
Saudi Arabia is also testing shuttle exports via its East-West Pipeline to Yanbu, but that route faces Red Sea risk after the Saudi-owned VLCC Amzan was hit west of Yanbu this week.
Dark tankers now account for part of the traffic, underscoring how heavily Gulf exports depend on movements that standard AIS vessel tracking can no longer fully capture.