Gulf Oil and Gas Flows Remain Fraction of Pre-War Levels Despite Rise in Tanker Transits and Dark-Mode Shipping Through Strait of Hormuz

Another LNG carrier loaded with Qatari gas passed through the Strait of Hormuz this week. Reuters reported the transit, citing data from Kpler and LSEG. The passage brings the total number of Qatari LNG cargoes that have cleared the chokepoint since the start of the war to five.

Nine LNG vessels have exited the Strait of Hormuz since February 28. The vessels carried Qatari and Emirati cargoes. A ballast LNG carrier entered the strait without issues and is set to load at the UAE’s Das Island, according to Vortexa data cited by Reuters.

Satellite imagery confirmed that ADNOC's Al Hamra carrier was near the Das Island terminal late last week. The carrier completed an inbound transit of the chokepoint. It returned from delivering an LNG cargo to India.

Dark-mode activity with transponders switched off has spread to commercial shipping of non-sanctioned barrels and other goods through the Strait of Hormuz. Vortexa data showed that dark transits accounted for 57 percent of all transits recorded over the period. 2 percent in May.

Oil and gas flows out of the Gulf remain a fraction of their pre-war levels despite the adoption of dark mode. The number of tankers clearing the Strait of Hormuz has increased in the past couple of weeks. Some tankers were granted safe passage by Iranian forces after negotiations between the governments of the receiving countries and Tehran.

Earlier this week Tehran said traffic in the Strait of Hormuz will reopen, but shippers would have to pay a toll to pass through the chokepoint.