LONDON, March 14 (Reuters) - Some oil-loading operations

have been suspended in the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah port,

a major global hub for refuelling ships as well as crude and

fuel exports, after a drone attack and fire on Saturday.

WHY DOES FUJAIRAH MATTER GLOBALLY?

Fujairah exported more than 1.7 million barrels per day of

crude oil and refined fuels on average last year, according to

Kpler data, a volume equal to about 1.7% of daily world demand.

The port is located on the Gulf of Oman, approximately 70

nautical miles from the Strait of Hormuz, which is effectively

closed due to the Iran war, increasing the importance of

Fujairah's flows to the global market during the current

conflict.

It sold 7.4 million cubic metres (about 7.33 million metric

tons) of marine fuels in 2025, making it the fourth largest in

the world after Singapore, Rotterdam and China's Zhoushan.

WHY DOES IT MATTER TO THE UAE?

The UAE, which before the war began produced more than 3.4

million bpd of crude, operates a 1.5 million bpd pipeline that

can transport some crude to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.

The Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP), also known as the

Habshan-Fujairah Pipeline, transports oil from Abu Dhabi's

fields to Fujairah. The port loads the UAE crude grade Murban,

sold mostly to buyers in Asia.

With Hormuz largely shut to exports, significant disruptions

at Fujairah would force OPEC's third-largest crude producer to

shut down more production.

WHY DOES IT MATTER TO CRUDE AND FUEL MARKETS?

The port has a storage capacity of 18 million cubic metres,

making it one of the world's top hubs for storing crude and

fuels as well as blending operations.

Blending in the oil industry is the process of mixing

different petroleum components to create finished products such

as gasoline and bunker fuels that meet specific standards.

Major global storage companies operate at the port,

including VTTI, Vitol, ADNOC, Vopak, and others.

The Fujairah Oil Industry Zone hosts the Middle East's

largest commercial storage capacity for refined products.