In this regard, Sohar Port and Freezone harbour master Batti Al Shibli told the media, “We are delighted to welcome Hormuz Marine to the Port of Sohar. Their expertise in providing an essential service will be vital to our future growth as we look to attract more vessels taking marine services and increase the cargo traffic visiting Sohar.

“Bunker quality is essential to maintaining efficiency and enabling vessels to meet regulations and tight timeframes. The new service is an incredibly valuable addition to the Port’s one-stop-shop marine services available to all visiting ships.”

Last month, it was reported that Oman’s Salalah Port handled 2.1 million containers during the first half of 2021. The port also handled 8.8 million general cargo goods during that period.

Mohammed Oufait Al-Shanfari, Executive Manager of Salalah Port Company, told the media that despite challenges posed by Covid-19 pandemic, the port had achieved positive growth in 2020. It made the largest volume of container handling ever a record hit of 4.3 million containers, compared to 4.1 million in 2019.

The ports in the Sultanate also achieved growth in several commercial operations and volumes of direct import during the same period.

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The Kingdom’s East-West pipeline system transports crude oil from the eastern province to the Yanbu port. Likewise, the UAE’s Habshan-Fujairah oil pipeline goes around the Strait of Hormuz, connecting Abu Dhabi’s oil fields to the export terminal in Fujairah, Khaleej Times reported.

The UAE pipeline’s transport capacity is 1.8 million barrels per day, meaning that it covers 75 percent of its oil exports. That said, the Kingdom’s transport capacity is 5 million barrels per day, which is about two-thirds of its crude exports.

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow sea passageway for oil shipments from the Middle East. Because it is the main artery for oil transport, countries have been relying on it for a long time. If Iran decides to close the Strait of Hormuz, then ‘no one will benefit from it’, Alireza Tenksiri, commander of the naval forces of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said.  

Countries including Kuwait, Bahrain, and Iraq do not have an alternative oil export route and will be at the receiving end of the conflict. But Oman’s major ports are located outside of the region. This way, the Strait of Hormuz closure will barely affect its oil shipments. 

Senior analyst at Moody’s Alexander Perjessy said, “The Strait’s closure would disrupt tanker traffic and weigh on the foreign exchange and fiscal revenue of those sovereigns most reliant on the Strait for transporting oil and gas exports. Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Bahrain and, to a lesser extent, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, are a credit negative.”

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