The port operator DP World, according to the economic newspaper Financial Times, is in negotiations to build a new multipurpose port and a container terminal on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates. This initiative by the multinational aims to reduce dependence on its main operations hub in Jebel Ali, located inland in the Persian Gulf, and offer a logistical alternative that avoids the passage of goods through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a channel subjected to recurring geopolitical and security tensions in recent months.
The company, based in Dubai, has engaged in formal conversations with the country's authorities to develop a new port on the Fujairah coast, oriented towards the Gulf of Oman, and add a terminal at the port that already operates in that same coastal region. With this new configuration, goods and containers would have the possibility to enter and leave Emirati territory directly from the Indian Ocean, without transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, and then be distributed by road in trucks to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and other states of the Arabian Peninsula.
The operation of the Jebel Ali port, considered one of the largest container facilities in the world and key for re-export trade between China and Africa, has recently experienced significant variations. Following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to the armed conflict in the Middle East, the movement of goods at this terminal in Dubai has recorded declines estimated between 90% and 95%. The instability in the area, characterized by the launch of projectiles and unmanned aircraft, has caused the port operator to divert vessels and shipments to the east coast ports, such as Fujairah and Khor Fakkan, which currently report congestion issues.
The corporation and various government sources have clarified that the expansion strategy towards the east coast does not contemplate the replacement or reduction in size of the Jebel Ali facilities, which house a large industrial free zone, high-capacity warehouses, and heavy industries solidified over decades. The company's management has characterized this plan as defensive, designed to safeguard the group's activity in case navigation problems persist in the accesses to the Persian Gulf.
The initial investment by DP World is estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars, an amount that the company plans to gradually increase based on operational needs and the evolution of capacity demand. Technical officials of the operator have indicated that, once the financial terms and project structure are defined with the authorities, the development of the new port works could be completed within eighteen months.
This modification in the infrastructure planning coincides with other measures adopted by the government of the United Arab Emirates, which has expedited work to construct a pipeline aimed at doubling crude oil exports from Fujairah without passing through Hormuz. At the same time, other private sector port operators like Gulftainer, based in the emirate of Sharjah, have announced investment plans worth $2 billion to increase the container handling capacity of their terminal located at the port of Khor Fakkan, also on the east coast of the country.
The difficulties in the Strait of Hormuz have notably altered commercial navigation in the region. Prior to hostilities, the daily average of vessel transits through this strait was around 135 units, a figure that has decreased to an average of 40 ships per day following recent incidents against the merchant fleet and cargo ships. For its part, the risk rating agency Moody's estimates that DP World's overall economic performance will be affected by this situation, projecting a reduction in the group's annual revenue from $6.6 billion obtained in the 2025 fiscal year to $5.9 billion anticipated for the current year.