Six million barrels of crude oil left the Strait of Hormuz after two months.

After more than two months of delays due to the Middle East conflict, three supertankers carrying approximately 6 million barrels of crude oil are crossing the Strait of Hormuz en route to Asia.

Ships in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman - Photo: REUTERS

According to Reuters, maritime data from the London Stock Exchange and analytics firm Kpler on May 20 showed three supertankers crossing the Strait of Hormuz heading towards Asia.

These ships had previously been anchored in the Gulf for over two months, carrying 6 million barrels of Middle Eastern crude oil. A fourth ship is also beginning to enter this route.

These are among the few super-heavy cargo ships that have left the Gulf this month, following transit routes mandated by Iran.

The conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran, which erupted on February 28, has severely paralyzed shipping through the Strait of Hormuz – a vital route controlling approximately one-fifth of the world's oil and energy supply.

Schedule data shows that the massive Chinese-flagged oil tanker Yuan Gui Yang received 2 million barrels of Iraqi Basrah crude oil on February 27, just one day before the conflict broke out.

After leaving the strait on May 20, the ship is expected to dock at Shuidong port near Maoming city, Guangdong province, southern China, on June 4 to unload its cargo.

The second vessel, the Hong Kong-flagged Ocean Lily, also received 2 million barrels of oil between the end of February and the beginning of March. This ship is expected to dock at Quanzhou port in Fujian province on June 5-6.

Following in the footsteps of the two Chinese ships, the South Korean-flagged oil tanker Universal Winner is also leaving the strait with 2 million barrels of Kuwaiti crude oil loaded onto it since March 4th.

According to data from Kpler, the ship is heading towards Ulsan – home to SK Energy, South Korea's largest oil refinery – for delivery on June 9th.

Before the conflict broke out, the average daily traffic of ships through the Strait of Hormuz was between 125 and 140, but now it is only about 10.

This figure includes dry cargo ships, chemical and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers, while crude oil tankers still account for a very small proportion. Around 20,000 crew members remain stranded inside the Gulf on hundreds of vessels.

The U.S. Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Center warned in a May 19 report: "The operating environment here remains at a high risk following recent attacks on ships. Over the past 48 hours, we have observed numerous instances of Iranian units issuing aggressive warning signals and engaging in assertive actions."

XUAN THAO

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/6-trieu-thung-dau-tho-roi-eo-bien-hormuz-sau-hai-thang-20260521134937903.htm