Oil storage capacity in the UAE's port of Fujairah is expected to rise to around 7.8 million cubic meters by 2014 from its current capacity of 5.8 million cu m, the harbour master at the Fujairah port said on Tuesday.

Fujairah is poised to rival the world's top two bunkering hubs, Singapore and Rotterdam, thanks to booming demand from the Middle East as well as Asia.

"We're working to develop our infrastructure parallel to the oil storage growth," Tamer Masoud told Reuters on the sidelines of an industry event in Dubai.

He added that by the end of this year oil storage capacity is expected to rise to 6.8 million cubic meters, and the increase will come from the completion of projects by Aegean Maritime, Gulf PetroChem and Enoc, as some of these firms are building in Fujairah for the first time.

With growing capacity and a strategic location which bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, Fujairah may eventually challenge Singapore's crown as the top oil storage and products trading centre.

"We're offering a one-stop shop in terms of maritime  s ervices, plus the strategic location makes an important difference," Masoud added. - Reuters