Ships in Hormuz Strait Hit by Worst Spate of Attacks Since Start of War

Twenty-four tankers and other vessels targeted by Iran in two weeks, including six on Sunday alone

Alice Hancock in London

Published 4 HOURS AGO -Read the Original Here 

Ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz are facing the most intense period of missile and drone attacks by Iran since the start of the US-Israeli strikes against the Islamic republic seven months ago, causing shipowners to reconsider carrying cargoes in the region. 

Six vessels were attacked on Sunday alone, according to the naval agency UK Maritime Trade Operations, which monitors marine security in the region. That makes it the deadliest day of attacks on shipping near the strait since the start of the conflict, according to FT calculations.

Of the ships hit, three were refined product tankers while two others were crude oil tankers belonging to the Chinese company New Treasure Shipping and South Korea’s Sinokor, according to maritime security company Vanguard. An Indian container ship was also hit, which followed attacks on Indian-crewed ships in recent days that injured several seafarers. Two Indian seafarers from one of the product tankers were reported missing.

India’s foreign ministry said on Sunday that the attacks were “deeply concerning” and called for an immediate resolution to the conflict.

According to data compiled by the FT from UKMTO reports and European security sources, 24 ships were hit in the two weeks to October 11. The next most intense period of attacks was during the first two weeks of March, when 13 ships were hit.

The Institute for the Study of War said: “Iran may be developing its anti-ship missile capabilities to improve its ability to target vessels.”

Oil flows out of the Gulf reached an average of 15.5mn barrels per day in September, their highest level since the war began, according to commodities platform Kpler. But since then exports have plummeted as new Iranian strikes sharply reduced the number of ships transiting the strait.

Only 2.9mn barrels of oil were carried through the waterway on October 11, according to figures published by Kpler on Tuesday, the lowest level this month. The figures could be revised upward once more vessels had been tracked on satellite imagery, Kpler said, but the seven-day average was about 43 per cent below pre-conflict levels.

How the war has affected traffic through the Strait of Hormuz

Shipowners that had been willing to take risks because of high freight rates in the region have started to avoid the area. In recent days, several vessels appear to have turned away from Fujairah, the United Arab Emirates anchorage on the Gulf of Oman that has hosted ships picking up Gulf cargoes, according to ship-tracking data.

Some vessels have headed from the Middle East to US ports in the Gulf of Mexico to pick up cargoes in a safer region where freight rates are still high thanks to a global shortage of tankers.

Part of the reason for the lack of tankers is that vessels have been forced to take longer journeys to reposition themselves as a result of the conflict or to engage in cargo transfers between ships, which can delay vessels for several days.

Average global supertanker earnings reached a fresh record on October 9 of $805,000 per day, according to shipbroker Clarksons. It estimated that longer routes and ship-to-ship transfers were increasing tanker demand by about 13 per cent.