Dark ships and Oman transfers indicate Hormuz transits continue

A handful of oil tankers were seen conducting ship-to-ship transfers off the coast of Oman, a sign that ships are continuing to sail through the Strait of Hormuz before offloading their cargoes onto other vessels after recent Iranian attacks.

At least four tankers were transferring cargoes near the ports of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates and Sohar in Oman, satellite images from the European Union’s Copernicus browser showed. Those areas have been the main spots where ships shuttling in and out of Hormuz have transferred their cargoes onto vessels that would ultimately sail on to their eventual destination.

It wasn’t clear when the vessels arrived, but there’s little incentive for ships to linger in those waters, due to the volatile geopolitical situation and the need to pay extra insurance costs.


In a further sign that some ships are still escaping the region, two vessels appeared outside the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday evening, having not signaled since they were inside the Persian Gulf on July 11. While it wasn’t clear when they crossed the strait, assuming they didn’t stop on their way out, they would have been in the middle of Hormuz on Tuesday night, according to Signal Ocean data.

Scrutiny has grown on whether transits through Hormuz would continue after Iran targeted vessels that were shuttling barrels out for the United Arab Emirates earlier this week. Those incidents have put pressure on oil flows out of the waterway, with visible transits sliding, shipowners expressing more caution and insurance rates soaring.

Still, the fees on offer to transit in and out of the gulf are substantial, meaning some owners may ultimately choose to continue, despite the risks.

The Joint Maritime Information Center, which liaises between western navies and merchant shipping, said on Thursday that commercial traffic in Hormuz is continuing, but at reduced levels.

“Operator caution following recent attacks persisted, and several companies delayed passages,” it said. “US-assisted commercial transits continued despite the elevated threat environment.”

It added that the US had assisted 10 vessels through Hormuz over the prior 48 hours.