US maintains Hormuz blockade amid rising tension
Washington is maintaining a total blockade on vessel movements to and from Iranian ports after weekend talks with Tehran ended without an agreement.
IMAGE: Strait of Hormuz. Getty Images
The move has further eroded an already fragile two-week ceasefire that began on 8 April. Vessel transits via the Strait of Hormuz could come to a complete halt following this move, market analysts fear.
A blockade of Iranian ports bas been fully implemented, US Central Command (CENTCOM) admiral Brad Cooper said, adding that US forces have “completely halted” economic trade going into and out of Iran by sea.
“During the first 24 hours, no ships made it past the US blockade and 6 merchant vessels complied with direction from US forces to turn around to re-enter an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman,” the US CENTCOM said in a statement.
Before the onset of the Middle East war on 28 February, about 20% of the global seaborne crude oil transited the Strait daily. Vessel traffic has dramatically reduced since, with merchant ships now operating under dual control – the US naval monitoring and Iranian directives, including a reported transit fees of up to $2 million per voyage.
With the Strait remaining effectively closed, about 17.7 million b/d of mainstream oil supplies based on 2025 averages, have been curtailed from the global market, tanker tracking firm Vortexa reported.
“If Iranian oil supplies are also blocked by US military, that would add 1.8mbd [1.8 million b/d] to the current shortfall, affecting mainly China’s imports,” Xavier Tang, senior market analyst at Vortexa said.
About 814 vessels remain stranded in the Gulf, with continued dark fleet activity around the Hormuz transit, according to the latest data by maritime intelligence firm Windward.
“Sanctioned and falsely flagged vessels continue to operate, testing enforcement limits in real time,” Windward said.
Notably, a Chinese-owned MR tanker under US sanctions, Rich Starry, re-entered the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, long after the US blockade was enforced, Reuters reported citing data from LSEG and Kpler.
According to Reuters, the vessel is carrying 250,000 bbls of methanol loaded at the UAE port of Hamriyah, which may explain why the vessel was able to transit without disruption despite the sanctions. US CENTCOM has said the blockade applies only to Iranian ports and vessels trading to and from them.
OPEC leader Saudi Arabia has requested the US to lift its blockade on Iranian ports, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing officials. The blockade may provoke further escalation from Iran, raising the risk of a shutdown of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait – an equally vital global energy artery alongside Hormuz.
“The situation remains volatile, and most vessel operators will likely take a wait-and-see approach and delay entry to the Middle East Gulf,” Tang said.
By Aparupa Mazumder
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