Fujairah, the world’s third-largest bunkering hub, expects energy companies to set up more refineries in the emirate to produce low-sulphur marine fuels.
“It's cheaper to produce it here … that's why we are expecting more special refineries to come up here,” Capt Mousa Murad, managing director of the Port of Fujairah, told The National on the sidelines of the Fujairah Bunkering and Fuel Oil Forum on Tuesday.
Demand for fuel oil with low sulphur content has been on the rise since the International Maritime Organisation banned ships from using fuels with a sulphur content exceeding 0.5 per cent in 2020.
However, the global demand for bunker fuel (fuel used in ships) is likely to decrease this year, amid a growing risk of recession in Europe and North America.
In January, the International Monetary Fund raised its global economic growth estimate for this year to 2.9 per cent from a previous forecast of 2.7 per cent.
Last month, the fund’s managing director Kristalina Georgieva said that while global economic growth had reached a “turning point”, the balance of risks was still “tilted to the downside.”
Meanwhile, the global shipping sector is still grappling with the effects of the Ukraine war and the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to supply-chain disruptions worldwide.
“These challenges are causing uncertainty in the market, making it difficult for companies to plan and invest in the long term,” said Saif AlMarri, Assistant Undersecretary for Petroleum, Gas and Mineral Resources, in a keynote speech at the event.
Mr AlMarri said overcoming the industry’s current challenges would help advance the “transition towards cleaner and more sustainable fuels”.
This would require “significant investments, co-ordination between governments and industry players, as well as a commitment to sustainability”.
Capt Murad also said that Adnoc’s liquefied natural gas export facility in Fujairah was in the front-end engineering design stage.
The project is expected to increase the state-run energy company’s LNG production capacity by 9.6 metric tonnes per annum.
On being asked whether the port would expand its LNG operations, Capt Murad said it would depend on the type of fuel that is required to be transported.
“We don’t know [if it is] going to be LNG, hydrogen or methanol, but we have to be ready for it,” he said.
Last month, Adnoc and German power company RWE announced the delivery of the first shipment of LNG from the UAE to Germany.
Europe, which is looking to reduce its reliance on Russian gas, has been boosting LNG imports from the US and the Gulf.
In November, QatarEnergy signed two sales and purchase agreements with ConocoPhillips to deliver up to 2 million tonnes per annum of LNG to Germany.
The EU could fall short by about 27 billion cubic metres of gas this year if Russian gas deliveries drop to zero and China’s LNG imports rebound to 2021 levels, the International Energy Agency said in a December report.
The UAE is also bullish on hydrogen and has been drawing up a plan to position itself as an exporter of the clean fuel and tap into its future potential.
Hydrogen, which can be produced using renewable energy and natural gas, is expected to play a key role in the coming years as economies and industries transition to a low-carbon world to mitigate climate change.
“We are going full steam ahead with the energy transition and I am proud to say that our clean power capacity is on track to reach 14 gigawatts by 2030,” said Mr AlMarri.
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Company Profile
Company name: Fine Diner
Started: March, 2020
Co-founders: Sami Elayan, Saed Elayan and Zaid Azzouka
Based: Dubai
Industry: Technology and food delivery
Initial investment: Dh75,000
Investor: Dtec Startupbootcamp
Future plan: Looking to raise $400,000
Total sales: Over 1,000 deliveries in three months
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre supercharged V6
Power: 416hp at 7,000rpm
Torque: 410Nm at 3,500rpm
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Fuel consumption: 10.2 l/100km
Price: Dh375,000
On sale: now
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 268hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: CVT auto
Fuel consumption: 9.5L/100km
On sale: now
Price: from Dh195,000
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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How to get exposure to gold
Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.
A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.
Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.
Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.
London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long
However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
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What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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More from Neighbourhood Watch
THE SPECS
Engine: 4.0L twin-turbo V8
Gearbox: eight-speed automatic
Power: 571hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,000-4,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.4L/100km
Price, base: from Dh571,000
On sale: this week
