Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, known as ADNOC, has issued its seventh tender for crude from the United Arab Emirates since the beginning of June, as it seeks to sell millions of barrels for loading between August and October from locations both inside and outside the Persian Gulf.

The tender comes despite renewed risks to supply through the Strait of Hormuz and fresh threats to Red Sea shipping from the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen. ADNOC is asking interested buyers to submit bids by the middle of next week for crude scheduled to load from August through October, Reuters reported on Friday, citing trade sources.

The Strait of Hormuz is the main maritime outlet for crude and refined products shipped from several Gulf producers, making any disruption there closely watched by oil buyers, tanker operators and insurers. The Red Sea route is also important for cargoes moving between Asia, the Middle East and Europe via the Suez Canal, so security concerns in both corridors can affect voyage planning and loading options.

Since early June, ADNOC is estimated to have sold more than 74 million barrels of crude through previous tenders. The company has done so by operating what traders described as a shuttle-style arrangement to move crude onto tankers outside the Strait of Hormuz.

For the seventh tender, the Abu Dhabi oil producer will automatically reject any bid submitted at a discounted differential, Reuters reported, citing its sources.

ADNOC is offering cargoes for loading from the UAE ports of Zirku and Das Island, both inside the Persian Gulf, as well as from the port of Fujairah outside the Gulf. Fujairah’s location on the Gulf of Oman gives sellers and buyers an export point beyond Hormuz, while ship-to-ship transfers can provide additional flexibility in matching cargoes with available vessels. The tender also includes options for ship-to-ship transfers offshore Fujairah or Malaysia.

Just before hostilities resumed in the Middle East, the UAE was estimated to have produced 4.1 million barrels per day of crude oil in June, its highest output on record.

According to estimates by the International Energy Agency, UAE crude production rose from 3.3 million barrels per day in May to 4.1 million barrels per day in June after the country left OPEC effective May 1, began increasing output and managed to move substantial export volumes out of the Middle East even as the Strait of Hormuz was mostly blockaded during the first half of June.

The UAE has attempted to adapt to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by moving tankers through the Strait in dark mode and by increasingly offering many of its crude grades for loading offshore Fujairah and at Sohar in Oman, both outside the Strait.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com.