Three Very Large Crude Carriers Exit Gulf via Strait of Hormuz for First Time Since Ceasefire

[Financial News] Three very large crude carriers (VLCCs) reportedly left the Persian Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz on the 11th local time.
According to foreign media reports, this is the first such passage since the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran declared a ceasefire.
The Strait of Hormuz is a strategic chokepoint through which about 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments pass in normal times. After the Islamic Republic of Iran came under surprise attack by Israel and the United States on February 28 and the war began, it effectively blockaded the strait, disrupting global energy supplies and sending oil prices soaring.
The three VLCCs that passed through the strait this time are the Liberia-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Serifos, and the China-flagged Cospearl Lake and He Long Hai. Each vessel can carry about 2 million barrels of crude.
The route they used is the "Hormuz transit test anchorage" corridor designated by the Islamic Republic of Iran, which detours around Larak Island, where Iranian military bases are located.
Citing data from London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and Kpler, foreign media reported that the Serifos is carrying crude loaded in early March from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and is expected to arrive at the Port of Malacca in Malaysia on April 21.
The two Chinese vessels are carrying crude from the Republic of Iraq and KSA respectively, and both have been chartered by Unipec. Unipec is the trading arm of China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), China’s largest state-owned petrochemical company.



kaya@fnnews.com Choi Hye-rim Reporter