DP World locks in a 50-year concession for two new terminals on the UAE's Hormuz-free coast

The UAE is moving fast to bulk out its east coast Hormuz bypassing options, with DP World inking an in-principle agreement with the Fujairah Ports Authority to develop two new deepwater terminals in Fujairah under a 50-year concession, it said in a statement. Construction will be carried out in phases and is expected to take 24-30 months from the start of works.

What it adds: Al Rugaylat, a container and multi-purpose terminal, will handle up to 2.5 mn TEUs, 1.7 mn tons of general cargo, and 190k car-equivalent units a year; Dibba, a general cargo terminal, adds 3.6 mn tons a year. Together they lift DP World's UAE container handling capacity from 19.4 mn TEUs to nearly 22 mn TEUs — a roughly 13% jump. Both sites sit on the Gulf of Oman, outside the strait entirely, and connect into Jebel Ali and Jafza through DP World's inland network.

IN CONTEXT- The UAE has been zeroing in on maintaining zero reliance on Hormuz. Foreign Trade Minister Thani Al Zeyoudi said last month the UAE was building a new harbor to complement its existing eastern ports, alongside new pipelines and expanded rail and road links, to cut the strait out of the equation altogether.

Why this matters: The move gives DP World another gateway outside Jebel Ali as export windows through the western ports continue to be squeezed by ongoing disruption in Hormuz. The move could also help create redundancy and “cut exposure in stress-test scenarios,” former head of supply chain and transport industries at the World Economic Forum Wolfgang Lehmacher previously told EnterpriseAM.

Yes, but that doesn’t erase the risk, Lehmacher added. His view is that new Gulf ports — Fujairah included — need to be judged as resilience assets, not just by throughput numbers: a route or a port can itself become a target or get constrained, so a bypass only counts if shippers and insurers actually trust it under stress. His practical test comes down to three questions: can high-value cargo move through east-coast gateways at a reasonable cost when Hormuz isn’t safe; do customs and data systems allow fast rerouting without getting stuck in red tape; and are security arrangements solid enough for a risk committee to sign off?

BACKGROUND- In the hedging pipeline so far: Adnoc is fast-tracking a second pipeline to double crude exports via Fujairah, while Borouge and AD Ports are exploring an alternative export hub for petrochemical shipments on the east coast.

Our take: We argued in March that Gulf ports couldn't out-build Hormuz's geography — capacity alone doesn't solve an access problem. The improvised version played out regardless: cargo rerouted through Khorfakkan, Fujairah, Oman’s Sohar, and Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah, then moving on by road. Today's agreement is DP World replacing that improvisation with permanent infrastructure.

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