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How the United Arab Emirates, by leaving OPEC, is bypassing Hormuz

2026-04-30 19:06:13Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
How the United Arab Emirates, by leaving OPEC, is bypassing Hormuz
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The United Arab Emirates' exit from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) after nearly six decades of partnership is already changing the landscape of the energy market in the Middle East, writes La Repubblica.

Starting tomorrow, Abu Dhabi will be free from production restrictions – imposed mainly by Saudi Arabia – and will be able to increase crude oil production to its maximum capacity. All this action has shifted attention to the Habshan-Fujarah pipeline, the infrastructure that allows the Emirates to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and which has become a symbol of this transition.

The official Wam news agency announced the decision on Tuesday in measured but unequivocal tones: “a sovereign decision based on the long-term strategic vision” and “national interest.” Translated from diplomatic language: no more quotas imposed by Riyadh, no more coordination that was hindering Emirati production (about 4.8 million barrels per day capacity).

Abu Dhabi wants to pump more, sell crude at will and, above all, ensure that the oil reaches its destination even though the war with Iran has transformed Hormuz into a nearly impassable conduit. And that's where Fujairah comes in.

How the United Arab Emirates, by leaving OPEC, is bypassing Hormuz

Inaugurated in 2012 after an investment of $3.3 billion, the Habshan-Fujairah pipeline, also known as the Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP), has a capacity of 1.5 million barrels per day, expandable to 1.8 million barrels per day. It does not cross the disputed waters between Iran and Oman.

It is less exposed to drones or missiles. It ends up at the Fujairah terminal in the Indian Ocean, ready for its way to Asia, Europe and beyond. In these months of crisis, while the rest of the Gulf is suffering, exports from Fujairah have already increased significantly.

The Emirates' move retrospectively reveals the importance of this infrastructure. For years, the pipeline was presented as a measure of resilience against geopolitical risks in an unstable region.

Today, with Hormuz blocked, it becomes the concrete means that allows the Emirates to free themselves from the producers' cartel.

Other Gulf players, tied to transit through the Strait, remain hostage to regional power dynamics. Abu Dhabi, however, is not. And its withdrawal from OPEC confirms this.

Analysts are looking further ahead: once the traditional route reopens, the Emirates' quota-free capacity will be able to flow into the market more flexibly, thanks precisely to the dual export route.

Saudi Arabia is currently silent and is taking the brunt of the blow: it is losing the group's third-largest producer and seeing Gulf unity crumble at its most vulnerable moment. Russia, an OPEC+ member, hopes its exit does not spell the end of the cartel and confirms its intention to remain.

The UAE’s Energy Minister, Suhail Al Mazrouei, reiterates his commitment to “price stability,” but the underlying message is clear: the Emirates aims to increase production “gradually and responsibly,” adapting it to demand. These words hide a new logic: fewer cartels, more autonomous infrastructure, less vulnerability.

Fujairah embodies this architecture. It is not just a pipe in the desert: it is the safety valve that made leaving OPEC conceivable – and now achievable.


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