The UAE’s marine-pollution response widened on October 24 when Ras Al Khaimah closed all beaches until further notice. The action followed confirmed tanker-origin oil contamination affecting neighbouring Umm Al Quwain and Sharjah.
1. UAE Oil Spill: Third Emirate Announces Coastal Restrictions
• Ras Al Khaimah’s Public Services Department ordered all beaches closed on October 24. Its announcement, circulated by Ras Al Khaimah Police, did not explicitly state the reason.
• On October 23, the UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment confirmed offshore tanker-origin pollution, launched containment and environmental assessments, and closed Umm Al Quwain beaches and coastal areas.
• Sharjah separately closed Al Hamriyah Beach as a precaution. Fishermen and other sea users were advised to avoid affected coastal waters and follow official restrictions.
• Satellite imagery from October 19 and 21 showed a substantial slick. A Conflict and Environment Observatory researcher estimated its area at approximately 160 km²; this is not a verified October 25 measurement.
• Orbital Risk Intelligence identified GEM NO. 2 (IMO 9735373) as the suspected source. The tanker was struck on October 9, but UAE authorities have not officially identified the leaking vessel or confirmed the spill’s cause.
• Coastal pollution and fishing restrictions are confirmed. No commercial-port closure, shipping-channel shutdown or desalination interruption has been verified.
2. Taiwan Ports Resume Traffic After Typhoon Champi
• Keelung and Taipei ports announced the lifting of vessel entry and departure controls from 17:00 local time on October 24, following Typhoon Champi.
• The Port of Taichung separately authorized the resumption of main-channel vessel movements from 13:00 local time that day.
• Suao Port remained subject to movement restrictions because of long swell, according to Taiwan International Ports Corporation’s Keelung branch.
• Taiwan’s Maritime Port Bureau reported 84 cancelled ferry sailings across six routes on October 24, including 54 on the Donggang–Xiaoliuqiu service.
• The bureau projected another 18 cancellations across seven routes for October 25. This was a forecast issued October 24, not a final count of Sunday’s cancellations.
3. Clean Tanker Market: LR2 Earnings Cross $300,000 Daily
• TradeWinds reported on October 24 at 15:21 GMT that the clean tanker market had reached another record, with LR2 spot earnings exceeding $300,000 per day.
• An earlier weekly market assessment, dated October 22, placed the TC1 Middle East Gulf–Japan LR2 route at approximately $329,000 per day, up 9.7% week on week.
• The same assessment indicated approximately $245,000 per day on the TC5 LR1 Middle East Gulf–Japan route, a weekly increase of 13.7%.
• These route assessments indicate acute product-tanker freight pressure. They are market earnings estimates, not evidence of completed individual fixtures or an independently verified October 25 spot quote.
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Sources
Reuters, UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Taiwan International Ports Corporation, Taiwan Maritime Port Bureau, TradeWinds
This update is part of the DeepDraft SITREP series covering developing maritime operational situations.
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