Three Indian Tankers Reemerge, Pointing to Hormuz Traffic Uptick

o31bxp0]lp1fj3ms6acpru6[_media_dl_1.png Joint Maritime Information Cente

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(Bloomberg) — Three fully laden India-linked supertankers have re-emerged in the Gulf of Oman, adding to increased observed bi-directional traffic across the northern and southern routes of the Strait of Hormuz even as conflicting narratives over the status of transits persist.

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The Desh Vibhor, Desh Vaibhav and Sanmar Herald were observed in the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea on Sunday, after having been last seen signaling their attempt to cross the Strait of Hormuz late Friday, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg News show. 

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The supertankers, each signaling Indian ownership or India-bound cargo, carry between them nearly 6 million barrels of Iraqi and Kuwaiti oil. It couldn’t be immediately determined the routes that these tankers took, but their attempts to sail toward Qeshm island suggest they may have taken a Tehran-approved one.

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Shipping Corporation of India, which is listed as the owner and manager of Desh Vibhor and Desh Vaibhav, on database Equasis, didn’t immediately respond to emails seeking comment outside of regular business hours. Neither did Sanmar Shipping Ltd., the operator of Sanmar Herald.

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The India-linked very large crude carriers’ journeys are part of a growing tally of tankers that also embarked on crossings in either way through the energy chokepoint. The transits come amid competing narratives from Iran and the US even as the two sides are set to kick off negotiations on a peace deal on Sunday.

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Iran proclaimed Hormuz shut on Saturday, saying it was doing so because Israel’s continued attacks in southern Lebanon had violated a ceasefire deal. The US Central Command pushed back against the claim on Saturday, saying traffic had increased with 55 merchant ships — delivering nearly 17 million barrels of oil to global markets — had crossed the strait.

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Some tankers were still seen approaching Hormuz late Saturday. Three fully laden crude supertankers were seen sailing, entering the strait on the Omani side, before they stopped signaling. One is delivering 2 million barrels of Saudi crude to Japan, while the other is lifting 2 million barrels of Qatari crude, with no clear destination. The two VLCCs followed the same route as another carrying a shipment from the United Arab Emirates hours earlier.

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In the reverse direction, but also along the Omani coast, three empty tankers openly signaled their locations in the strait, sailing into the Persian Gulf, data show. One was a very large gas carrier that had traveled from Duqum on the Gulf of Oman, before turning off its transponders after last signaling that it was in the Persian Gulf late Saturday.

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The other two were crude supertankers that most recently delivered Emirati crude. One of the VLCCs openly signaled its location in one of the anchorages in the Gulf of Oman a few days ago. Some Gulf producers are known to dispatch tankers “dark” through Hormuz so that the cargoes can be transferred onto fresh vessels waiting in those waters without drawing attention to these shipments.