Despite Thursday’s attack on the container ship Ever Lovely, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continued on Friday in both directions and does not appear to have been significantly disrupted.
According to maritime tracking data, two fully loaded tankers were leaving the Persian Gulf, while along Oman’s coast four empty very large crude carriers (VLCCs) were also moving into the area. The southern corridor is administered by Oman and coordinated by the United States.
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However, the strike on the Ever Lovely, the first since the temporary peace agreement between the US and Iran, has caused some shipowners and captains to pull back, according to maritime operators themselves. At least one Asia-based company has changed its previous plans to depart and informed employees that ships in the Persian Gulf should remain where they are until executives reassess transit alternatives, according to a memo seen by Bloomberg.
Even so, the attack does not appear to have completely hindered the gradual return of normal activity. According to Vortexa data, the daily average of tanker crossings before the attack had risen to more than 20 a day after the agreement, up from just six a day during most of the war.
Among the vessels leaving through the Strait of Oman are an Aframax tanker bound for India and a small tanker under US sanctions. Also entering the strait was a fully loaded VLCC carrying oil from the United Arab Emirates, along with a products tanker transporting cargo from the same exporter.
In the other direction, an empty VLCC heading for Basra in Iraq entered the strait, along with three other ships bound for the United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile, near Khor Fakkan, a natural gas carrier also appears to be trying to pass through.
Some vessels have chosen the northern corridor near Iran to leave the Persian Gulf, an alternative recognized by the International Maritime Organization. A South Korean-flagged products tanker, another bound for Indonesia, as well as a cargo ship, attempted to exit by sailing close to the Iranian coast.
The Strait of Hormuz and the way it is administered continue to be a major source of friction between Tehran and Washington. This week, the US said that Iran must keep the strait toll-free and guarantee that ships will not be charged fees if it wants a lasting peace agreement.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited the Arab Gulf states and said that if Iran imposes charges in Hormuz, nothing would stop governments from doing the same at other “key maritime chokepoints,” which, he said, would cause chaos.
Washington is also pressuring Oman, which also has access to the strait, not to create a joint fee system with Iran. The sultanate has sent mixed signals. On Tuesday, it published a joint statement with Tehran saying the two sides would discuss traffic management in the strait and its costs. On Thursday, however, Rubio said Oman had assured him that it did not support such charges.
“They signed the statement that said there would be no fees or tolls,” Rubio said, referring to a joint statement between the US and the Gulf Cooperation Council, which said the parties “rejected any fee or attempt to impose control in the Strait of Hormuz.”
