The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is speeding up construction of a new oil pipeline to boost export capacity and bypass the Strait of Hormuz, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said Friday.
The project is being implemented by the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).
The pipeline is expected to become operational next year, according to the media office, and it will double the company's crude oil export capacity through the Port of Fujairah.
After exiting the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on May 1, the UAE is no longer bound by OPEC production quotas.
On Tuesday, ADNOC announced a plan to raise its oil production capacity to over 5 million barrels per day.
The Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint through which roughly 20 percent of the world's oil shipments pass, has seen shipping traffic largely blocked amid tensions resulting from the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
UAE accelerates construction of new oil pipeline to boost export
Delegates from member cities of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) gathered in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, on Friday, for a dialog to explore how cultural creativity can help drive sustainable urban and industrial development.
Running through Saturday, the event has brought together representatives from more than 10 cities across over 10 countries, including France and Spain.
Wuxi joined the network last October as "Creative City of Music." Jiangsu Province now has five cities included in the UCCN.
The network aims to promote cooperation among cities that identify creativity and culture for key factor of urban development.
"It's also a way for cities to demonstrate what they are doing in terms of strategies, in terms of initiatives, in terms of policies at a local level, how they can use culture and creativity to build more resilient, safe, inclusive, and culturally cities," said Denise Bax, secretary of the UCCN.
Representatives from other "Cities of Music" around the world shared their thoughts on how music could be further integrated into local development and international cooperation.
"A lot of students are from China in our conservatory, and I think that this is one of the first steps that we can connect with Wuxi. Then we are interested to learn the strategy of Wuxi and most of all in involving young generation in the music, creativity, and public policy about music and creativity," said Daniele Vimini, vice mayor of Italy's Pesaro.
Established in 2004, the UCCN aims to promote cooperation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development. So far, the network includes 408 cities from more than 100 countries.
Creative cities dialog opens in Wuxi
