UAE Oil Minister Mohamed Bin Dhaen Al Hamli stated that the oil pipeline that will allow the country to export oil via Fujairah should be operational within six months.
To be tested
"The pipeline is almost complete but hopefully it will be operational within six months, by May or June," Al Hamli was quoted as saying by Zawya Dow Jones.
"The first tanker loaded will be in about six months time, ready for export," adding the project involves a lot of work as the pipeline has to be filled with crude and tested.
The pipeline is known as Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (Adcop) and is being built for the Abu Dhabi government investment firm International Petroleum Investment Co. (IPIC). It will cost around US$3.29 billion.
To export 70 per cent crude
The 400km pipeline will have the capacity to transport between 1.5-1.8mn barrels a day. It will enable Abu Dhabi to export as much as 70 per cent of its crude from Fujairah, where tankers will be able to pick up the oil instead of sailing into the Persian Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway watched over by Iran.
