First loaded Iranian oil tankers exit Gulf since US blockade, tracking firm says

Three Iranian oil tankers carrying a total of five million barrels of crude have become the first such loaded vessels to leave the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz since a US blockade came into force, the tracking firm Kpler tells AFP.

The Deep Sea, Sonia I and Diona, all under US sanctions, passed the strategic strait yesterday after leaving Iran’s Kharg Island, having loaded on April 2, 8 and 9 respectively, according to the maritime data company.

Iran began blocking the strait, a key pathway for the global oil and natural gas supply, since the beginning of the US-Israeli war with Iran on February 28. Washington has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports since Monday, amid a ceasefire, intended to prevent Tehran from exporting its oil.

No Iranian tanker had left the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz with a cargo of crude oil since April 10.

Kpler used satellite imagery to track the ships, and confirms to AFP that they all crossed the strait on Wednesday.

Their destinations are unknown but these vessels have been systematically transporting their cargoes to the Singapore area for several years.

In that area, ship-to-ship transfers have been detected, moving the cargo to other tankers bound for China, according to data from Global Fishing Watch and Kpler.

The three ships each transferred cargoes of Iranian crude oil near Singapore in March.

The Deep Sea’s previous cargo was delivered by the Utopia Quest to the port of Yantai, northern China, on March 30.

The Diona’s cargo was delivered by the Indigo Ray on April 10 to the oil terminal at the port of Dongjiakou, also in northern China.

And the Sonia I’s cargo was transferred to the Adeline G, whose destination was unknown.