Tankers exit Gulf via Strait of Hormuz as US-Iran talks begin

SINGAPORE/KUALA LUMPUR: Three supertankers fully laden with oil passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, shipping data showed, in what appeared to be the first vessels to exit the Gulf since the US-Iran ceasefire deal.

Tehran’s blockade of the strait, a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, has disrupted global energy supplies and sent oil prices soaring since the start of the Iran war at the end of February.

The Liberia-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Serifos and China-flagged VLCCs Cospearl Lake and He Rong Hai, entered and exited the “Hormuz Passage trial anchorage” that bypasses Iran’s Larak Island on Saturday, LSEG data showed.

Each vessel is capable of carrying 2 million barrels of oil.

Serifos heads to Malaysia

Serifos, which LSEG and Kpler data showed is chartered by Thai state-owned energy firm PTT, is among seven vesselsthat Malaysia sought clearance from Iran to transit the strait, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The tanker, carrying crude loaded from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in early March, is expected to arrive at Malaysia’s Malacca port on April 21, data from LSEG and analytics firm Kpler showed.

Malaysia’s foreign ministry, Petronas and PTT did not respond to requests for comment on Sunday outside office hours.

Another tanker Ocean Thunder, loaded with Iraqi crude and chartered by a unit of Malaysian state energy firm Petronas, transited the waterway last week.  

Two Chinese vlccs clear Hormuz Transit

Cospearl Lake, laden with Iraqi oil, is expected to arrive at eastern China’s Zhoushan port on May 1, LSEG data showed.

It was not clear where He Rong Hai will discharge the Saudi crude on board.

Both VLCCs are chartered by Unipec, the trading arm of Chinese energy giant Sinopec, the data showed.

Sinopec did not respond to a request for comment outside office hours.

US negotiators leaving without a peace deal with Iran

Hundreds of tankers are still stuck in the Gulf, waiting to exit during the two-week ceasefire period.  

Empty vessels sailing into Gulf

Three other empty tankers - Mombasa B, Agios Fanourios I and Shalamar - were sailing in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday to enter the Gulf and load oil, LSEG data showed.

Malta-flagged VLCC Agios Fanourios I signalled that it is heading to Iraq to load Basrah crude for Vietnam, the data showed.

Eastern Mediterranean Maritime, which manages Agios Fanourios I and NV, the manager for Liberia-flagged VLCC Mombasa B, did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside office hours. Pakistan National Shipping, which manages the tanker Shalamar, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.