Dubai's Al Khaleej sugar refinery still open for exports and imports

By Sarah El Safty and May Angel

DUBAI/LONDON, March 5 (Reuters) - Dubai-based Al Khaleej Sugar, owner of the ⁠world's largest port-based sugar refinery, is operating normally and is still open for import and export, the company's managing director, ⁠Jamal Al-Ghurair, told Reuters on Thursday.

The comments came as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran entered its sixth day, with vessel traffic through the critical Strait of Hormuz remaining all but halted.

Al Khaleej is heavily dependent on the Strait for its roughly 1.6 million metric tons of annual raw sugar imports and for the 1.3 million tons or so of refined sugar that it exports annually.

Al-Ghurair, however, said that the company can, if needed, use the ports of Fujairah, Khorfakan and Sohar, which lie outside the Strait, to import and export sugar.

The company's global customers understand the current situation and are working on it with shipping companies, he added.

Al Khaleej Sugar has around two years of raw sugar reserves if they are not refined and exported outside the Gulf region, Al-Ghurair said, adding that the company can provide neighbouring countries with sugar if needed.

Gulf states are facing their biggest food security challenge since the 2007/08 global food crisis - when international prices of staple foods soared - as the region imports 80%-90% of its food.

The United Arab Emirates says its strategic reserves of vital goods can cover four to six months of needs, and has urged residents to report any unjustified price increases through a dedicated hotline. Supermarket staff told Reuters that shelves remain largely stocked, though suppliers are taking longer to replenish certain products.

According to sugar consultant Michael McDougall, the Gulf imports roughly 10% of the world's raw sugar through the Strait of Hormuz each year, while exporting about 5% of global refined sugar through the chokepoint.

"The longer there is a blockade the worse the problem will get, (but) the refineries still have some stock," he said.

Al Khaleej accounts for nearly 4% of the world's annual imports of raw sugar and more than 4% of global refined sugar exports, according to Reuters calculations based on data from the International Sugar Organization