UAE Restores Oil Exports to 85% of Pre-War Levels

The United Arab Emirates has restored its oil exports to approximately 4.3 million barrels per day, reaching 85% of pre-war levels by early June 2026. This recovery follows a steep decline to 1.9 million barrels per day in March 2026 caused by conflict with Iran. To maintain global crude flows, the UAE utilized a pipeline network to bypass the Strait of Hormuz toward the port of Fujairah and leveraged a 42-million-barrel underground storage facility at Mandous.

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company employed high-cost logistics to navigate regional volatility, including a shuttle service and a fleet of smaller tankers with disabled transponders to conduct dark crossings. Since early June, the state-run company sold over 130 million barrels across seven tenders, primarily supplying refiners in China and Japan. These efforts, supported by an interim peace agreement between the United States and Iran, helped stabilize Brent crude prices after they briefly exceeded $100 per barrel.

While the UAE has moved more oil through the Strait of Hormuz than any other producer over the last two months, other regional actors have faced greater disruptions. Iraq and Kuwait moved smaller volumes, and Saudi Arabia's attempts to bypass the strait via the Red Sea port of Yanbu were hampered by Houthi militant attacks, increasing global reliance on UAE supplies.