Photo: Shutterstock\/Sven Hansche<\/p>\n
Greek-Operated Tanker Breaks Through Hormuz Gridlock<\/p>\n
LONDON, May 15 (Reuters)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0A Greek-operated tanker sailed from the Gulf to India on Friday after crossing the Strait of Hormuz in one of the few crude sailings through the waterway this week, ship tracking data showed on Friday.<\/p>\n
U.S.-Israeli\u00a0war on Iran<\/p>\n
has led to the effective closure of the strait, stranding\u00a0hundreds of ships\u00a0and leading to unprecedented disruption of energy supplies.<\/p>\n
The Liberia-flagged suezmax tanker<\/p>\n
, which can carry a maximum of 1 million barrels of oil, was sailing towards the western India\u00a0port\u00a0of Sikka on Friday after crossing the Strait of Hormuz on May 14, according to analysis from Kpler.<\/p>\n
The vessel was at maximum load after calling at Basra oil terminal on May 10, Kpler analysis showed.<\/p>\n
Satellite analysis from data analytics specialists SynMax also found the vessel\u2019s draft had increased on May 14, indicating it had taken on cargo.<\/p>\n
\u2018 Greek-based manager Dynacom, which has been one of the salient\u00a0Greek players to ship oil\u00a0through the strait after the war began on February 28, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n
Separately, a Panama-flagged crude oil tanker managed by Japanese refining group\u00a0Eneos passed through\u00a0the strait, ship-tracking data from LSEG showed on Thursday.<\/p>\n
FEW CROSSINGS THROUGH THE STRAIT<\/p>\n
Before the war on Iran began, the<\/p>\n
was the conduit for 20% of the world\u2019s energy supplies, equating to 125 to 140 daily passages.<\/p>\n
Nine\u00a0ships crossed\u00a0into the Gulf of Oman via Hormuz over the last 24 hours and were mainly small cargo or dry bulk ships bound for Iran, according to SynMax data.<\/p>\n
Seven separate ships \u2013 including two oil products tankers from Gulf\u00a0ports \u2013 left Hormuz mainly for locations on the other side of the Gulf around Oman, the data showed.<\/p>\n
Traffic passing through the waterway was around 10 vessels on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Iran\u2019s state TV said on Friday that 30 ships crossed the strait on Thursday in both directions and that number was \u201cset to accelerate.\u201d<\/p>\n
U.S. President Donald Trump said his<\/p>\n
patience\u00a0with Iran was running out<\/p>\n
and that Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed during their talks in Beijing that Tehran must reopen the strait.<\/p>\n
Concerns have mounted over the vessels and their crew trapped in the strait. The Marshall Islands\u00a0shipping\u00a0registry, among the world\u2019s biggest flag states, said this week that\u00a0threat levels\u00a0for merchant vessels remained at their highest levels in the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than 20,000 seafarers remain trapped inside the Strait of Hormuz, facing fear and uncertainty, cut off from their families, and in many cases running short of food, water and fuel,\u201d leading maritime union, the International Transport\u00a0Workers\u2019 Federation said separately this week.<\/p>\n