First Saudi Oil Shipments to US Resume After Hormuz Strait Reopens

Key News on US-Iran War

WASHINGTON (CNA) - Two supertankers carrying Saudi Arabian crude oil are en route to the United States, marking the first such shipments since February and a significant step towards normalizing global energy supplies after the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Bloomberg News, Saudi crude oil shipments to the US were temporarily halted after Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz in early March in retaliation for attacks by the US and Israel.

The resumption of shipments is expected to help replenish US crude oil inventories, which have fallen to a seven-year low as the US exports large volumes of oil to fill the supply gap from the Middle East.

Data compiled by Bloomberg shows that both shipments were loaded in early March but were subsequently delayed in the Persian Gulf until late June before continuing their journey.

Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted Saudi Arabia's daily crude oil exports of over 6 million barrels, with only a portion being rerouted through the Red Sea. The latter is mostly sold to Asian buyers, who typically account for over 80% of Saudi crude oil exports.

Data indicates that one of the very large crude carriers passed Singapore over the weekend and has set its destination as San Diego, California. Another vessel, after changing course off the southern tip of India last week, has rerouted to Galveston, Texas.

According to data from the US Department of Energy, Saudi Arabia typically supplied about 300,000 barrels of crude oil per day to refineries on the US Gulf Coast and West Coast. However, in the lead-up to the US and Israeli attacks on Iran, Saudi crude oil arriving in the US had temporarily doubled to about twice the usual amount.

Reuters reports that shipping data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) shows that after vessels were stranded in the Persian Gulf for months due to the US-Iran war, 10 Japan-related vessels are departing the Strait of Hormuz today, while a supertanker carrying Saudi crude oil for South Korea left the waterway over the weekend. (Compiled by Hong Pei-ying) 1150706

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