Abu Dhabi - The Oil Market.

Oil consumption averages about 80,000-90,000 b/d, compared to 155,000 b/d for the whole of the UAE. Abu Dhabi supplies the other UAE emirates with about 30,000-40,000 b/d. They buy the remaining 35,000 b/d of their oil products needs from Fujairah's small refinery, from Bahrain and other Gulf sources.

ADNOC-FOD acts as a monopoly in Abu Dhabi and, together with foreign oil companies, used to dominate the rest of the UAE market. The dominant role of the foreign oil companies in the other emirates ended in 1980 when the federal entity, Emirates General Petroleum Corp. (EGPC), began distributing oil products. Based in Dubai, EGPC operated service stations in all emirates but Abu Dhabi. To compete with ADNOC-FOD, EGPC in 1992 started buying unleaded gasoline from the international spot market. In 1988 a third distribution company entered the market: Dubai state-owned Emirates Petroleum Products Co. (Eppco), which opened service stations in Dubai and later expanded to other emirates including Fujairah. But the Abu Dhabi market was closed to Eppco, which eventually was given the name Emirates National Oil Co. (ENOC). ENOC imports an important part of its oil products needs from Bahrain. In July 1993 it signed a contract with ADNOC to buy 600,000 tons of gasoline, gasoil and fuel oil. Now ENOC is having a condensate refinery built at Jebel Ali to be on stream in 1999, which will initially produce naphtha, diesel and jet fuel. At a later phase it will be expanded to produce gasoline and LPG. Sharjah has a small refinery at the Hamriya free industrial zone.