Dubai: State-owned Abu Dhabi National Tanker Company, or ADNATCO, is making preliminary inquiries to charter VLCCs to store crude, industry sources told reuters on Tuesday.
The shipping firm is making the inquiries on behalf of parent company and state oil firm Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, or ADNOC, traders and shipbrokers said.
ADNOC pumps most of the crude produced by Opec member the United Arab Emirates, the world's third-largest oil exporter.
"They are asking for extremely flexible options at the moment with an eye on possible storage options in the West or the East," a shipbroker said. "They are not ready to move yet but they can move to make the booking with very little notice...they want us to be ready to go."
It was unclear why ADNOC was looking for storage options, or how many vessels it was seeking, industry sources said.
Around 100 million barrels of crude are being held worldwide on very large crude carriers, chartered by traders and international oil firms, as oil supply outstrips global demand. [06/05/09]
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