Adnoc’s XRG just bought into Venezuela’s gas sector alongside BP + UCC

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WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TODAY

TODAY: XRG’s buying spree reaches Venezuela + Mubadala’s getting bids for Porto Sudeste

Good morning, nice people. We’re covering a lot of ground this morning, and somehow all of it involves someone reaching for a map. Venezuela, Brazil, and the Strait of Hormuz are all in play this morning — capital, cargo, and control, in that order.

XRG just bought its way into Venezuela. The Adnoc investment arm is taking an equal stake in the offshore Loran gas license alongside BP and Qatar’s UCC, going after a field with more than 4 tcf of proven gas. Meanwhile, Mubadala’s Brazil port sale is heating up. The sovereign fund and Trafigura have picked up two offers for Porto Sudeste, their iron ore terminal with room to expand to 100 mn tons.

And Iran and Oman may have just found something to agree on. The two sides appear to be working out a shared traffic framework for Hormuz, with shipping routes already settled as part of a wider agreement on sovereignty and safe passage.

GO DEEPER- An Iran-Oman agreement would settle only part of the Hormuz question. We mapped out possible futures for the strait — from managed instability and de facto Iranian control to a bilateral compromise — and unpacked what to watch if, and when, any agreement is put into practice. Read our deep dive here.

Mubadala’s Brazil port sale heats up

Mubadala Capital — a subsidiary of UAE sovereign wealth fund Mubadala — and trading giant Trafigura Group have received two offers to acquire Porto Sudeste, their iron ore export terminal in Brazil, Bloomberg reports, citing people in the know. The terminal has a 100 mn ton expansion license and is linked to a major iron ore-producing state.

The bids: One offer came from a consortium comprising BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners, Brazilian miner Vale, and steelmaker Gerdau, while the second came from Infrastructure investor I Squared Capital. The offers value the port — previously valued at USD 5 bn — at some USD 3 bn and USD 3.5 bn, though it is unclear which bidder tabled the higher amount.

The asset: Porto Sudeste handled a record 27.8 mn tonnes of iron ore in 2025, up 27% from 21.9 mn tonnes a year earlier — but well below its annual capacity of around 50 mn tonnes or its potential 100 mn tonnes expansion. The Rio de Janeiro terminal is linked by rail to the major iron ore-producing state of Minas Gerais and provides Brazilian miners with access to international markets, particularly Southeast Asia.

BACKGROUND- Mubadala and Trafigura took control of the terminal back in 2014 through a transaction involving USD 996 mn, before exploring the sale 10 years later in 2024, initially considering packaging Porto Sudeste with their Morro do Ipe iron ore mining operation in Minas Gerais. Mubadala was reportedly planning to use the sale proceeds to boost investments in Bahia state, including a planned refinery for green diesel and sustainable aviation kerosene.

Mapped

Iran and Oman appear to be moving toward a framework for managing traffic through the strait, after agreeing on shipping routes through the waterway, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told state-run Defa Press. The shipping map would form part of a broader agreement intended to preserve both countries’ sovereignty and provide safe passage for vessels.

The difficult bits are still unresolved: Further talks are planned, with Tehran yet to disclose how vessels would be protected or whether they would face transit fees. The proposed framework would govern how traffic moves through the strait, but would not by itself reopen the waterway, Bloomberg reports, citing Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi.

Reopening Hormuz still depends on the US meeting separate Iranian conditions, Aragchi said, noting that “we have not yet made a decision to resume negotiations with the US.”

Washington sees it differently: A US blockade of Iranian ports was a “wall of steel” that enabled Washington to effectively govern Hormuz, US President Donald Trump said (watch, runtime: 1:05:26), adding that “pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz strait a territory of the United States.”

MEANWHILE- The security situation is still deteriorating. The UAE accused Iran of attacking an Adnoc vessel transiting Hormuz on Friday — the third incident involving an Adnoc vessel in less than a week. Around 65 maritime incidents have been confirmed across the strait and the wider Middle East as of 11 August, according to the International Maritime Organization.

Setting the record straight

Egypt’s Transport Ministry has denied rumors that an Egyptian-linked vessel was attacked by Houthis in Bab Al Mandab on Tuesday, after reports circulated claiming the struck ship’s operator was based in Alexandria, according to a statement. The ministry said the vessel — named Tihamah — flies a Tanzanian flag, is Yemeni-owned, and is run by Blue Sea for Management Marine out of its Dubai branch.

ICYMI- A small cargo ship was struck in Bab Al Mandab strait last week, reportedly killing six crewmembers and injuring 11. The Houthis — who declared a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia late last month — have not claimed responsibility for the strike.

Market watch

Oil prices rose this morning as US-Iran peace hopes faded and tanker traffic through Hormuz slowed, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures increased nearly USD 0.72 to USD 89.20 / bbl by 02.29 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained USD 0.44 to USD 82.83 / bbl.

The Baltic Index gains ground: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — was up 0.7% to 2,863 points on Friday. The capesize index gained 1.5% to 4,538 points, while the panamax dipped by 1.5% to 2,228 points. The smaller supramax inched up 0.6% to 1,622 points.

The Drewry World Container Index rebounded 1% to USD 4,339 per 40-ft container last week, according to the latest index readings. Transpacific rates led the gain — Shanghai-Los Angeles rose 6% and Shanghai-New York 10% — while Asia-Europe lanes stayed weak, with Shanghai-Rotterdam down 5% and Shanghai-Genoa down 8%. Rates remain volatile as Middle East tensions, US tariffs, and Asian port congestion push carriers toward emergency fuel surcharges and blank sailings, with little relief in sight while the geopolitical and trade backdrop stays unsettled.

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XRG takes a stake in Venezuela’s offshore Loran gas field in BP-led agreement

XRG has bought its way into Venezuela, taking an equal-interest stake in the offshore Loran gas license alongside BP and Qatar’s UCC Oil and Gas, Adnoc’s international investment arm said in a statement (pdf). The field holds more than 4 tcf of proven gas.

REMEMBER- We reported in January that Adnoc was evaluating a Venezuela entry through XRG, contingent on clearer legislative and financial structures and coordination with Washington. Interim Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodriguez has been rewriting the country’s hydrocarbon law to open the door to foreign capital since the US captured former president Nicolás Maduro in January and pushed Rodriguez’s interim government toward an investment-friendly posture.

Why this matters: It marks a broader shift in how Gulf energy groups invest internationally. “Gulf companies are increasingly building portfolios that include upstream assets, LNG capacity and trading positions in several regions at once. The logic is straightforward: diversify the sources of molecules, diversify the buyers they can reach, and reduce reliance on any single geography or export route,” UAE-based commodity analyst Natalia Katona tells EnterpriseAM.

Why Venezuela now? “Loran offers the chance to connect Venezuelan offshore gas to nearby Trinidadian infrastructure and global LNG markets. But this is an emerging option, not an established supply route. Its viability will depend on development terms, cross-border arrangements, access to capacity, sanctions compliance, and competitive economics. Not on resource size alone,” former head of supply chain and transport industries at the World Economic Forum Wolfgang Lehmacher tells EnterpriseAM.

IN CONTEXT- US President Donald Trump has been lobbying American oil companies directly to invest in Venezuela’s energy sector — but several have stayed on the sidelines, wary of the cost of rebuilding a gas industry that's gone through years of underinvestment and sanctions. That's the gap XRG, BP, and UCC are stepping into.

Venezuela’s gas sector has moved fast since January. Shell was awarded Loran’s first phase in June, tied to its existing Manatee development across the maritime boundary in Trinidad and Tobago, with first gas from Manatee expected next year. This latest award to BP, XRG, and UCC covers phase two of the same Loran-Manatee accumulation, which holds roughly 10 tcf of recoverable gas combined. Loran, together with Shell’s Dragon project — another Venezuelan gas field holding 4.2 tcf — are expected to give Venezuela its first offshore gas exports, with the initial supply routed to Trinidad for LNG processing.

BACKGROUND- This is XRG’s second Latin American gas position in under a year. XRG and Eni each took 32% stakes in three YPF-operated upstream blocks in Argentina's Vaca Muerta shale basin in June, with YPF retaining 36% — the upstream backbone for an integrated LNG project targeting 12 mtpa across two floating units. That sits alongside XRG's stake in NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG in the US as well as a stake in Azerbaijan's Southern Gas Corridor. The oil and gas investor is also eyeing potential investments in Canada and Australia, while also doubling down heavily on US gas.

What is Latin America offering? “Offshore Latin America can offer a somewhat cleaner proposition: large resources, access to Atlantic markets and, in many cases, national companies that need outside capital, technical expertise and project-management experience to move very large developments forward,” Katona tells us.

What’s next: XRG’s stake is still subject to definitive license terms, regulatory sign-off, and “applicable international sanctions [and] compliance requirements.”

Saudi crude through Sidi Kerir more than doubles as Houthi threats hit Yanbu-Asia

Saudi crude floods Sidi Kerir as Houthi threats shut down the Yanbu-Asia route: Crude exports from Egypt’s Sidi Kerir more than doubled to around 2.3 mn bbl / d in August from some 1 mn bbl / d in July, with Saudi barrels accounting for most of the increase, Kpler Commodity Research Director Matt Smith told CNBC.

BACKGROUND- Egypt first emerged as a Saudi export fallback in March, when it offered the Ain Sokhna-Sidi Kerir route as a workaround for disruptions at Hormuz. Egypt later opened 10 Red Sea storage facilities to international players, while Sumed continued moving Saudi crude at full capacity after attacks near Yanbu. The latest threat puts the same infrastructure to work as a bypass for Bab Al Mandab after Aramco started offering additional crude cargoes from Sidi Kerir on a spot basis by the end of July.

A workaround replacing the workaround: Riyadh had already redirected crude from its eastern oilfields through the East-West pipeline to Yanbu — the golden route that bypassed the disrupted Hormuz — but the Houthis’ declaration of a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia last month has now undermined the route from Yanbu through Bab Al Mandab. Saudi crude shipments crossing the southbound route fell almost 90% to 1.3 mn barrels in the first week in August, down from 11 mn barrels in the third week of July, according to Kpler.

How it works: Saudi crude shipped from Yanbu is unloaded at Ain Sokhna, carried across Egypt through Sumed, and reloaded onto tankers at Sidi Kerir, allowing vessels to collect cargo without entering the Red Sea or paying the canal’s tolls. The pipeline also allows fully loaded VLCCs — which sit too deep to cross the Suez Canal — to discharge part of their cargo at Ain Sokhna, transit the canal with a shallower draft, and reload the barrels on the Mediterranean.

A rerouting of trade? Most Saudi crude leaving Sidi Kerir is heading to Europe and the US — rather than making the roughly 25-days-longer voyage around Africa to Saudi’s usual Asian customers. Kpler’s Smith said some Asian buyers appear to be reselling the barrels into the Atlantic market because taking them around the Cape of Good Hope is uneconomic. The knock-on effect could push some West African crude that would normally supply Europe eastward to Asia.

The bigger picture: Egypt’s bypass route is a symptom of a region-wide production hit. Saudi Arabia and Iraq accounted for roughly 72% of the region’s 5.46 mn bbl / d in crude shut-ins in July, according to our own calculations based on the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) August Short-Term Energy Outlook (pdf). The EIA expects most of that to unwind by early 2027, though not all of it. Even after Gulf production largely recovers, around 600k bbl / d is expected to remain offline through end-2027, Bloomberg reports.

The shut-ins are set to get worse before they get better. The EIA expects regional shut-ins to climb from 5.46 mn bbl / d in July to 6.6 mn in 3Q, as it assumes Hormuz flows stay severely constrained through August before easing from September. Oil moving through the strait averaged just 4.9 mn bbl / d in 2Q, against 21.6 mn bbl / d in 4Q 2025.

Which means the apparent shipping recovery shouldn’t be taken at face value. Real-time volumes through the strait are hard to pin down because vessels are going dark to obscure their movements, the business information service notes, leading to discrepancies among market estimates. Energy Secretary Chris Wright put weekly outflow at around 9 mn bbl / d — which could indicate the gap between the quarterly data and real-time flows.

Hormuz disruption boosts AD Ports’ net income, hits DP World’s

Hormuz disruption cost AD Ports volumes, not income

Higher rates and asset sales are covering for the war’s hit to AD Ports Group’s cargo volumes. The ports and logistics player’s net income rose 88% y-o-y to AED 836 mn in 2Q 2026, according to a financial release. UAE container throughput fell 65% y-o-y to 573k TEU, while bulk and general cargo volumes dropped 67% y-o-y to 3.1 mn tonnes, as Hormuz disruptions kept ships away from the AD Ports’ home ports. Revenues climbed 47% y-o-y to AED 7.08 bn during the same period, with AED 650 mn in contribution from warehouse sales.

AD Ports credited its landlord model for cushioning the blow. With rents largely untied to cargo volumes, the company said its presence across the whole supply chain, along with new routes via Fujairah Terminals and Khor Fakkan Port on the Gulf of Oman, helped offset lower UAE throughput. Container capacity utilization in the UAE stood at just 22% during the quarter, against 61% internationally.

The group’s near-term priority is funding its acquisition spree. AD Ports has AED 5.89 bn in undrawn credit facilities, including an accordion option, to close its pending buys: Brazil’s CLI agri-bulk terminal operator for an enterprise value of AED 3.1 bn (expected to close end of 3Q 2026), and Germany’s MBS Logistics for AED 300 mn (expected in 4Q). It also completed a 30% stake increase in Global Feeder Shipping, taking its holding to 81% for AED 1.1 bn.

The war weighed down DP World’s 1H income

Conflict-driven disruption at Jebel Ali weighed on DP World’s first-half earnings. Ports and logistics operator DP World’s net income fell 39.1% y-o-y to USD 585 mn in 1H 2026, according to its financials (pdf). Throughput fell 90.1% y-o-y in 2Q to just 374k TEU, versus a 59.5% decline for the half overall. Its revenue rose 13.1% y-o-y to USD 12.7 bn during the half, while gross container throughput fell 5.7% y-o-y to 42.8 mn TEU. Gross volumes excluding Jebel Ali are up 6.5% like-for-like in 1H.

DP World noted that Jebel Ali’s infrastructure remains intact, with the decline reflecting reduced vessel traffic rather than physical damage.

DP World’s only numeric guidance for 2026 is on spending. It plans to invest approximately USD 3 bn for the year, funding projects including Jebel Ali’s expansion, EZ World, London Gateway, and the two new Fujairah terminals it plans to develop as a workaround for the Strait of Hormuz.

Doubling down: DP World is still adding Gulf capacity, with plans for two new terminals on the UAE’s Gulf of Oman coast, away from the Strait of Hormuz disruption that hit Jebel Ali.

Mustafa Sheikhoune named SCZone chairman

A new SCZone chief, another year for Rabie: Mustafa Sheikhoune has been appointed as the chairman of the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), replacing Walid Gamal El Din as his four-year term ends, according to a statement. Sheikhoune previously served as deputy chairman of the General Authority for SCZone for Investment and Promotion. Osama Rabie’s position as chairman of the Suez Canal Authority was extended for another year under the same decree, with Ahmed Khaled now serving as the board’s vice chairman.

Iraqi trucks reach Turkmenistan for the first time under TIR system

Iraqi trucks ran their first TIR-system trip all the way to Turkmenistan, according to a Ministry of Transport statement. A truck run by state-owned General Company for Land Transport departed Iraq’s Arar crossing on the Saudi border, transiting through Iran to reach the Incheh Borun crossing on the Iran-Turkmenistan frontier — the furthest an Iraqi carrier has run since the country switched on TIR last year.

REFRESHER- Iraq joined the International Road Transport Union in March of last year — a move expected to reduce transport times by 80% and cut costs of transporting goods by around 38%. The TIR system aims to pave the way for a transnational trucking route that connects the Arabian Gulf from Iraq’s Umm Qasr port with the Mediterranean through Turkey’s Mersin port.

Calendar

AUGUST

30 August-1 September (Sunday-Tuesday): Air Cargo Middle East, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

30 August-1 September (Sunday-Tuesday): Saudi Warehouse and Logistics Expo, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

SEPTEMBER

16-17 September (Wednesday-Thursday): Saudi Maritime & Logistics Congress, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

22-23 September (Tuesday-Wednesday): Breakbulk Americas, Houston, US.

22-24 September (Tuesday-Thursday): Seamless Middle East, Dubai, UAE.

28-30 September (Monday-Wednesday): Transport Logistics Middle East, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

OCTOBER

12-14 October (Monday-Wednesday): The Airport Show, Dubai, UAE.

20-22 October (Tuesday-Thursday): TOC Americas, Cartagena, Colombia.

21-22 October (Wednesday-Thursday): Global Ports Forum, Singapore.

26-29 (Monday-Thursday): Air Cargo Forum, Miami, US.

27-29 October (Tuesday-Thursday): Routes World, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

NOVEMBER

2-5 November (Monday-Thursday): ADIPEC Maritime and Logistics Exhibition and Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE.

10-11 November (Tuesday-Wednesday): TOC Asia, Singapore.

10-12 November (Tuesday-Thursday): Intermodal Europe, Rotterdam, Netherlands.

11-13 November (Wednesday-Friday): Logitrans, Istanbul, Turkey.

18-19 November (Wednesday-Thursday): Breakbulk Asia, Singapore.

FEBRUARY 2027

10-12 February (Wednesday-Friday): Routes Americas, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

MARCH 2027

16-18 March (Tuesday-Thursday): CMA Shipping, Houston, US.

16-18 March (Tuesday-Thursday): Routes Asia, New Delhi, India.

APRIL 2027

20-22 April (Tuesday-Thursday): Routes Europe, Antalya, Turkey.

26-29 April (Monday-Thursday): Transport logistic and air cargo Europe, Munich, Germany.

26-29 April (Monday-Thursday): Saudi Smart Logistics, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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