Hundreds of ships drop anchor in Gulf water as Iran war escalates

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LONDON – At least 150 tankers, including those carrying crude and LNG, dropped anchor in open Gulf waters beyond the Strait of Hormuz.

Dozens more were stationary on the other side of the chokepoint, shipping data showed on March 1, after

US and Israeli strikes on Iran

plunged the region into turmoil.

The tankers were clustered in open waters off the coasts of major Gulf oil producers, including Iraq and Saudi Arabia, as well as liquefied natural gas (LNG) giant Qatar, according to Reuters estimates based on ship-tracking data from the MarineTraffic platform.

Many of the vessels were stationary within the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of key Gulf countries, including Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to MarineTraffic data.

An EEZ extends up to 39km and beyond local territorial limits of 12 nautical miles.

Dozens of cargo ships were separately clustered across various EEZs, the data showed.

Some 20 per cent of global oil, including from producers Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iraq, Kuwait and Iran, passes through the Strait of Hormuz, along with large volumes of LNG from Qatar.

In addition, at least 100 more tankers were anchored outside of the strait, along the UAE and Omani coasts and anchorage points, as well as dozens of cargo ships, according to the data.

Several tanker owners, oil majors and trading houses suspended crude oil, fuel and LNG shipments via the Strait of Hormuz after the attacks. Tehran said it closed navigation, trading sources said on Feb 28.

“At present, no such formal suspension (of traffic through the strait) has been communicated internationally by recognised maritime authorities,” the US Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Center said in a note on Feb 28.

“Mariners should expect increased naval presence, enhanced force protection postures, potential VHF hailing, congestion near anchorage areas outside the Strait, and insurance market volatility,” it said. REUTERS