ADNOC’s new Hormuz bypass pipeline is 50% complete and on track for 2027, CEO Sultan Al Jaber said, warning full pre-war oil flows will not return before the first half of 2027 even if conflict ends immediately. ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company) is the UAE’s state-owned energy giant, one of the world’s largest oil producers, responsible for managing Abu Dhabi’s vast hydrocarbon reserves and export operations.
Summary: Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of ADNOC, speaking at an Atlantic Council event, 21 May 2026:
- The new West-East Pipeline, which will double export capacity through the port of Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman, is approximately 50% complete and targeted for delivery in 2027
- Construction was fast-tracked on the direction of Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed following the Hormuz closure
- More than one billion barrels of oil have been lost since the strait’s closure, with nearly 100 million additional barrels lost for every week it remains shut
- Even if conflict ended immediately, oil flows would take at least four months to recover to 80% of pre-war levels, with full normalisation not expected before the first or second quarter of 2027
- The UAE was struck by more than 3,000 missiles and drones targeting civilian and energy infrastructure, with damage assessment ongoing and full operational capacity at some facilities potentially weeks or months away
- Global upstream investment of around $400 billion per year barely offsets natural decline rates, and spare crude capacity of approximately 3 million barrels per day needs to rise to around 5 million barrels per day
The United Arab Emirates has completed nearly half of a second pipeline designed to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, with the project on course to double export capacity through the port of Fujairah by 2027, ADNOC chief executive Sultan Al Jaber said at an Atlantic Council event on Wednesday.
The new West-East Pipeline was fast-tracked on the direction of Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed following Iran’s closure of Hormuz in early March, which Al Jaber described as the most severe energy supply disruption in history. More than one billion barrels of oil have been lost since the strait shut, with close to 100 million additional barrels forfeited for every week it remains closed.
The recovery timeline Al Jaber outlined offers little comfort to energy markets. Even if the conflict were to end immediately, he said it would take at least four months for flows to return to 80% of pre-war levels, and full normalisation is not expected before the first or second quarter of 2027. The existing Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline, which carries up to 1.8 million barrels per day to Fujairah, has been the UAE’s primary rerouting mechanism, but Iran has complicated even that option by expanding its claimed jurisdiction over the strait to include the UAE’s Gulf of Oman coastline.
The human cost to UAE infrastructure has been severe. Al Jaber said the country was struck by more than 3,000 missiles and drones targeting civilian and energy facilities, with damage assessment at some ADNOC sites still ongoing and full operational restoration at certain locations potentially months away.
Beyond the immediate crisis, Al Jaber pressed a broader structural case. Global upstream investment of around $400 billion per year is barely keeping pace with natural production decline, and spare crude capacity of roughly 3 million barrels per day needs to reach 5 million barrels per day to provide adequate market buffer. The UAE’s exit from OPEC, effective May 1, was framed as a sovereign decision driven by the global need for more supply rather than a rupture with Gulf partners.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, speaking separately, said Iran’s use of Hormuz as a pressure point was a card that could only be played once, predicting that accelerated pipeline construction across the Gulf would permanently reduce the strait’s strategic weight.
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The confirmation that full oil flow normalisation is unlikely before the first or second quarter of 2027 removes any near-term relief premium from the market. Even an immediate end to the conflict would leave global supply running at a significant deficit for months, with the four-month timeline to reach 80% of pre-war levels providing a hard floor for elevated energy prices.
The UAE’s OPEC exit, now freed from output quota constraints, adds a wild card to supply-side pricing dynamics. Global spare capacity of around 3 million barrels per day against an assessed need of 5 million barrels per day underlines how little buffer the market has.
Iran’s expanded definition of the Strait to include the UAE’s Gulf of Oman coastline directly threatens the existing ADCOP pipeline route, making the second pipeline strategically critical well beyond its commercial value.