Strait of Hormuz sees 17 vessel transits in 48 hours

A total of 17 merchant vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, shipping data released on Monday, August 24, showed, as Iranian and U.S. blockades continued to restrict traffic through this strategic chokepoint for energy shipments.

Four vessels crossed the strait on Sunday, August 23, according to preliminary data from maritime analytics firm Kpler as of 02:28 GMT, after 13 vessels transited on Saturday, August 22. The figures could be revised because some ships switched off their transponders while passing through.

That compared with 16 transits on Friday, August 21. Two empty very large crude carriers (VLCCs) were among the vessels that entered the Gulf with their tracking devices switched off. One was headed to Iraq and the other to Bahrain, the data showed.

A VLCC carrying 2 million barrels of Emirati crude passed through the strait on its way out of the Gulf on Thursday, August 20.

Eight very large gas carriers transited the strait over the previous three days. Six entered the Gulf empty, while the other two departed carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) loaded in Iran.

Overall traffic remained subdued during the week ended August 21, as vessels abandoned transit plans or switched to routes through the northern part of the strait following attacks, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said in a report.

The report, based on Automatic Identification System (AIS) data, showed that 89 vessels exited the strait while 103 entered during the seven-day period.

“Traffic remains well below normal levels, with AIS-detected transits approximately 90% below pre-conflict baseline levels and declining from the peak recorded between June 24 and 26,” the agency added.

Tanker traffic accounted for 45% of all movements and remained the dominant vessel segment in the strait, the UKMTO said.

Within tanker traffic, 56% consisted of vessels carrying crude oil, petroleum products or chemicals, while LPG carriers accounted for a further 24%.

Since July 6, the UKMTO has recorded 23 incidents involving projectile strikes, which caused damage to bridges, engine rooms and vessel structures in and around the strait.

A total of 24 commodity vessels transited the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Sunday, August 23, down from 32 on Saturday, which was up from 22 on Friday, according to Kpler data.

Two VLCCs entered the Red Sea on Saturday, August 22, one carrying Iraqi Basrah crude and the other sailing empty, the data showed.

Source: Portal Portuario

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