14 July 2026
DP World is reported to be in talks to build a new port and container terminal in Fujairah, on the UAE's Gulf of Oman coast, so cargo can enter and leave the country without passing through the Strait of Hormuz and then move overland to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. According to a Financial Times report published on 13 July 2026, the first phase could be completed in as little as 18 months, with initial investment running into hundreds of millions of dollars. The plan is still at the negotiation stage and DP World has not issued an official statement, but the direction matters for any company that imports, exports or re-exports through the UAE. This guide explains what is on the table, why the east coast route is strategically important, and what a Fujairah gateway would mean for trade-focused businesses.
What DP World is reported to be planning
The Financial Times, cited by Zawya and Reuters, reports that DP World is negotiating a new multipurpose port and a container terminal on the UAE's east coast, in the emirate of Fujairah. Talks are said to cover both a brand-new port and a terminal at the existing Fujairah harbour, with the project structure and financing not yet settled. The stated aim is to reduce dependence on the flagship Jebel Ali hub in Dubai and to give cargo a route that avoids the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters noted it could not independently verify the report, so the details below should be read as a reported plan rather than a confirmed project.
Fujairah sits on the Gulf of Oman, roughly 80 miles from the Strait of Hormuz. Under the plan, containers and other cargo would be handled on the Gulf of Oman coast and then moved by road or rail to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and other commercial centres. In effect, goods would reach the UAE from the open ocean side and travel the last leg overland, rather than sailing through the strait to reach ports inside the Gulf.
Why the Strait of Hormuz is the pressure point
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most important shipping chokepoints, and a large share of Gulf trade normally passes through it. Earlier this year a closure of the strait sent container volumes at Jebel Ali down sharply. At the height of the disruption, activity at the port is reported to have dropped by as much as 95 percent, forcing importers to divert goods through eastern UAE terminals and truck them inland. That shock was severe enough to push decision-makers toward a permanent structural alternative rather than simply waiting for the next disruption to pass.
A dedicated east coast gateway answers that risk directly. If a significant volume of cargo can enter at Fujairah and reach Dubai and Abu Dhabi by land, a future closure or slowdown in the strait becomes far less damaging to supply chains that run through the UAE. For businesses, that is the real headline: resilience. We covered the underlying dynamic in our guide on Strait of Hormuz risk and re-export through the UAE, and the Fujairah plan is the infrastructure answer to the same problem.
What a Fujairah gateway would mean for trade businesses
For companies that move physical goods, a second high-capacity entry point changes the calculation in several ways. It adds an alternative to the Jebel Ali route, spreads risk across two coasts, and shortens the sea leg for cargo arriving from Asia or East Africa that would otherwise round into the Gulf. It also strengthens the wider case for basing a trading or logistics company in the UAE, where road and rail links increasingly tie the ports together into a single land network.
- A Gulf of Oman entry point reduces exposure to a single chokepoint, which matters for insurance, delivery guarantees and contract reliability.
- Overland links from Fujairah to Dubai and Abu Dhabi keep goods inside the UAE customs and free zone system, useful for re-export and value-added distribution.
- A shorter, more predictable route can lower the cost and delay of diversions when the strait is under stress.
- More capacity across two coasts supports companies building the UAE into a regional hub rather than a single-port dependency.
None of this is automatic, and timelines can slip: the reported 18-month horizon depends on approvals and financing closing. But the direction is clear, and companies that trade through the UAE should factor a second east coast gateway into how they plan routing, warehousing and licensing.
How to position a trading business for the shift
If your business depends on moving goods through the Gulf, the practical response is to structure for flexibility now rather than react later. That means choosing a licence and jurisdiction that let you clear and store cargo across more than one corridor, and setting up customs and logistics arrangements that are not tied to a single port. Our guide on setting up an import-export company in Dubai walks through the customs, licensing and logistics choices that decide how easily you can switch routes.
- Review whether your current licence and free zone let you receive and re-export cargo through more than one UAE entry point.
- Map your supply chain against both the Jebel Ali and Fujairah corridors, so you know where a strait disruption would actually hurt.
- Confirm your customs registration and logistics partners can handle overland movement between the east coast and the inland emirates.
- Budget for warehousing or bonded storage that keeps goods inside the UAE system while you distribute or re-export.
- Keep licensing flexible enough to add activities or locations as the east coast infrastructure comes online.
How Atlant Capital can help
Atlant Capital helps trading, logistics and re-export companies set up in the UAE with routing resilience built in from the start. We advise on the right free zone or mainland licence for import-export activity, register the company and its customs codes, and align the structure with corporate banking and logistics partners so your goods can move through more than one corridor. As the UAE develops its east coast capacity, we help clients position their licensing, warehousing and re-export operations to use it. Explore our company setup and advisory services to start.
The takeaway
A reported DP World port in Fujairah is more than a logistics headline: it is a signal that the UAE is building a physical answer to Strait of Hormuz risk. If the plan proceeds, a Gulf of Oman gateway feeding Dubai and Abu Dhabi overland would make supply chains that run through the UAE markedly more resilient. For trade-focused businesses, the takeaway is to plan for two coasts, not one, and to structure the company so it can use whichever route stays open.
