First Japanese tanker transits Strait of Hormuz after ~38 prior turnbacks
- Japan-linked crude supertanker Idemitsu Maru sailed out of the Persian Gulf this week, one of the first recent oil cargoes to clear Hormuz. - Bloomberg reported the vessel carried 2 million barrels from Saudi Arabia’s Juaymah terminal and used a Tehran-approved route near Qeshm and Larak. - Traffic remains far below normal after weeks of disruption in a chokepoint for roughly a fifth of global oil and LNG flows. (reuters.com)
A Japan-linked crude supertanker, Idemitsu Maru, sailed through the Strait of Hormuz this week, testing a route many shipowners had avoided for weeks. (bloomberg.com) (gulfnews.com) Bloomberg reported the ship left a holding area northwest of Abu Dhabi on April 27 and neared the eastern exit of the strait on April 28. It was carrying 2 million barrels of crude loaded at Saudi Arabia’s Juaymah terminal in early March. (bloomberg.com) The transit followed weeks in which commercial traffic through Hormuz shrank to a trickle and multiple vessels were forced back or left waiting. Reuters reported on April 27 that six tankers loaded with Iranian oil had recently been forced back to Iran by the U.S. blockade. (reuters.com) Hormuz is the narrow sea lane between Iran and Oman that connects Gulf oil and gas exporters to the open ocean. Reuters has described it as a route for about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows. (reuters.com) Japan has more at stake than most importers. Japan’s transport ministry said around 45 ships owned or operated by Japanese companies were stranded in the region as of April 3, when a Japanese-owned gas carrier became the first Japan-linked vessel to cross since the conflict began. (reuters.com) That earlier ship was Sohar LNG, co-owned by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines. Reuters said it crossed alongside three Omani-operated tankers and a French-owned CMA CGM container ship, reflecting Iran’s policy of allowing passage for vessels it considered friendly. (reuters.com) Idemitsu Maru’s voyage is different because it is a laden crude supertanker, the kind of ship that directly feeds refinery supply chains. Gulf News, citing ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, said the vessel had begun exiting the waterway by April 29. (gulfnews.com) (bloomberg.com) Even so, the route is not back to normal. Reuters said on April 24 that only five ships had passed through Hormuz in the previous 24 hours after new seizures and continued U.S. restrictions. (reuters.com) The immediate signal from Idemitsu Maru is narrow but important: at least one Japan-linked crude cargo got out. The broader picture is still one of sparse traffic, selective passage and a shipping industry treating every Hormuz transit as a political negotiation as much as a voyage. (bloomberg.com) (reuters.com)
