The Fujairah Port will get a fourth refinery in 2021 as Brooge Energy expects its 25,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) refinery producing low sulfur fuel oil to be launched in H2 2021, according to S&P Global.

The port’s third refinery, owned by Ecomar Energy Solutions, began operating in April 2020 with a capacity of 15,000 bbl/d which later increase to 20,000 bbl/d and plans to reach 60,000 bbl/d by 2023. On managing the COVID-19 crisis, Ecomar’s trading director Leigh Shaddick, stated that “the UAE has done a fantastic job managing COVID-19. The Port of Fujairah has done a great job. The infrastructure is there and there have been no delays in vessels coming in or leaving the port.”

The upcoming year will be a recovery period for the Middle East (ME), Iman Nasseri, ME Managing Director for Facts Global Energy, expects that on average, petroleum products trade will reach about 7 million barrels per day (mmbbl/d) in 2021 in comparison to approximately 6.5 mmbbl/d in Q3 2020. However, trade will not exceed 2019’s figures until 2022 with the possibility to reach 8.5 mmbbl/d by 2023 or 2024 as giant refineries in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, UAE, and Oman began operating.

It should be noted that stockpiles of oil products at the Fujairah port reached 24.639 million barrels (mmbbl) in the week to December 14 indicating an increase of 1.550 mmbbl from the previous week. Heavy distillates including fuel for power generation and bunkers rose 11% to 11.327 mmbbl as well.