Abu Dhabi port eases restrictions on oil tankers going to and from Qatar

Abu Dhabi port authorities have eased restrictions on oil tankers going to and from Qatar, two shipping circulars seen by Reuters on Wednesday showed.

Abu Dhabi Petroleum Ports Authority issued a new circular on Wednesday removing previous restrictions on non-Qatar owned, flagged or operated vessels sailing to and from Qatar.

This effectively allows direct trade between the two ports and co-loading of crude cargoes, a Singapore-based shipbroker said.

The ban on vessels carrying the Qatari flag and vessels owned or operated by Qatar is still in place, according to the circular.

But given there are not that many Qatari flagged or owned vessels, this is unlikely to have as big an impact on the market as the previous circular, the shipbroker added.

Reuters reported on Wednesday two Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC), which can each carry up to 2 million barrels of oil, successfully loaded Abu Dhabi grades on Wednesday, despite having taken on Qatari crude in an earlier leg of the voyage.

It was not immediately clear if other Middle East ports had eased restrictions.

Tensions in the Middle East erupted on June 5, when Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism. The Arab allies, which halted air, land and sea movements to and from Qatar also implemented shipping restrictions.