The Strait of Hormuz may still be effectively blocked, but crude oil shipments from the West Asian Gulf region — excluding Iran — have returned to pre-war levels, as producers cut their dependence on tankers navigating the choked waterway.
According to maritime intelligence and research firm Kpler, at least 16.5 million barrels per day of crude left the region between September 1 and 28, matching the pre-war average. During the peak of the West Asia war in March, the average was just 10.5 million barrels per day.
Pipelines and shuttle tankers do the heavy lifting
Before the war, 83 per cent of the region's crude crossed Hormuz. In September, 40 per cent of exports moved through pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates without crossing the key chokepoint at all. Of the remaining 60 per cent that physically crossed Hormuz, most was moved using shuttle tankers, said Emmanuel Belostrino, Kpler's head of global crude and geopolitical market data.
Belostrino said more than 70 per cent of the crude that crossed the Strait of Hormuz in August changed tankers offshore in the Gulf of Oman. Confirmed crude crossings were still more than a quarter below the pre-war level, but volumes moving through alternative routes had more than doubled and made up almost exactly the difference.
Saudi Arabia pushed more crude through its east-west pipeline to Yanbu, with loadings rising from 0.8 million barrels per day before the war to 4.3 million in June. The UAE sent crude through the Abu Dhabi crude oil pipeline to Fujairah, where loadings rose from 1.1 million barrels per day to 2.7 million.
Emergency reserves also released
Separately, the International Energy Agency said member countries had released 325 million barrels of oil and oil products from strategic reserves, out of 400 million barrels pledged in March.
The recovery marks a significant shift in the energy fallout of the West Asia war, with Gulf producers rebuilding export routes around the strait even as diplomatic efforts to reopen it continue.
Sources:
- The Times of India — "Hormuz blocked, but Gulf crude shipments at pre-war level"
According to maritime intelligence and research firm Kpler, at least 16.5 million barrels per day of crude left the region between September 1 and 28, matching the pre-war average. During the peak of the West Asia war in March, the average was just 10.5 million barrels per day.
Pipelines and shuttle tankers do the heavy lifting
Before the war, 83 per cent of the region's crude crossed Hormuz. In September, 40 per cent of exports moved through pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates without crossing the key chokepoint at all. Of the remaining 60 per cent that physically crossed Hormuz, most was moved using shuttle tankers, said Emmanuel Belostrino, Kpler's head of global crude and geopolitical market data.
Belostrino said more than 70 per cent of the crude that crossed the Strait of Hormuz in August changed tankers offshore in the Gulf of Oman. Confirmed crude crossings were still more than a quarter below the pre-war level, but volumes moving through alternative routes had more than doubled and made up almost exactly the difference.
Saudi Arabia pushed more crude through its east-west pipeline to Yanbu, with loadings rising from 0.8 million barrels per day before the war to 4.3 million in June. The UAE sent crude through the Abu Dhabi crude oil pipeline to Fujairah, where loadings rose from 1.1 million barrels per day to 2.7 million.
Emergency reserves also released
Separately, the International Energy Agency said member countries had released 325 million barrels of oil and oil products from strategic reserves, out of 400 million barrels pledged in March.
The recovery marks a significant shift in the energy fallout of the West Asia war, with Gulf producers rebuilding export routes around the strait even as diplomatic efforts to reopen it continue.
Sources:
- The Times of India — "Hormuz blocked, but Gulf crude shipments at pre-war level"
