UAE selling Saudi oil highlights new Gulf energy realities

The US-Israel-Iran war appears to be pushing key Gulf rivals toward a rare instance of cooperation on energy matters: News surfaced on Nov. 10 that the United Arab Emirates has reportedly marketed Saudi crude salvaged from a damaged supertanker for sale this month. The deal marks an unusual — and likely exceptional — arrangement between two Gulf neighbors whose relationship has deteriorated since last year amid an intensifying regional rivalry. But the development also arrives as the ongoing US-Iran war has upended traditional oil-export routes, forcing Gulf producers to find new ways to keep oil and gas flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, including by working together opportunistically. What happened: The UAE's Energy Ministry has offered 1.87 million barrels of Saudi Arab Light crude for sale from the Gem No. 2, a supertanker that was struck by an unidentified projectile off the Emirati coast last month, Reuters reported Nov. 10, citing three trade sources and a tender document.The UAE offered the cargo for loading through a ship-to-ship transfer between Nov. 10 and Nov. 20, according to the document. The tender closed Nov. 9. Emirati authorities had stopped an oil leak from the vessel in late October, although cleanup operations along the coast were continuing.