All articles tagged with #tanker
Shipowners ordered more than twice as many tankers this year than in all of 2025, in a $20 billion spree—the largest in at least a quarter century—as Middle East conflicts redraw trade routes, including the closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline. With crude from the Americas now moving on longer transoceanic voyages, tanker hire rates have surged to record highs, exceeding $1 million per day.
A tanker was struck in the Strait of Hormuz as part of ongoing shipping disruptions. UKMTO, cited by DPA, said the Aframax Liberian-flagged vessel carrying 704,000 barrels of jet fuel was struck in the Iran–Oman waterway and reached Fujairah. Overall traffic through Hormuz remains well below recent averages as Iran and Oman discuss a temporary corridor to reopen navigation. About 65% of Hormuz exports head to China, and Windward data show limited tanker movements (11 inbound, 6 outbound; 6 tankers total), highlighting persistent risks even as oil traders stay cautiously optimistic.
Oman is scrambling to contain a large oil spill off its southern coast from the tanker Caroline Bezengi, reportedly part of Russia’s shadow fleet, which has been stranded for over a month in a protected marine area. The slick covers roughly 400 sq km (with Greenpeace estimating about 600 sq km) near the Hallaniyat archipelago, home to a marine reserve protecting reefs and sea turtles. Authorities are aerially monitoring, deploying divers, and planning to transfer the oil cargo to reduce risk and safeguard biodiversity while the cause remains undetermined and the vessel remains under sanctions scrutiny.
A Bermuda-flagged liquefied natural gas tanker, Gaslog Shanghai, was struck by a missile near the Strait of Hormuz, damaging its engine room and leaving it inoperable off the Oman coast. UKMTO confirmed a strike in the same area overnight, and Bloomberg cited security sources. US embassies began urging Americans in the region to depart the Middle East as tensions rise, though Iran has not claimed responsibility for the attack, which followed threats of strikes on Iran.
An oil tanker blew up after hitting a mine in the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran’s state-linked media said it intercepted six vessels crossing the strait in the last 24 hours; the tanker’s identity was not disclosed and it allegedly strayed from Iran’s approved route. The episode comes amid ongoing US-Iran tensions and a roughly 70% plunge in strait traffic since a cease-fire breakdown, with Iran warning ships and the US navy maintaining a blockade.
The U.S. says it paused further direct strikes in the Strait of Hormuz after disabling the Mozambiqueflagged tanker Lavine and inspecting the M/T Charminar, as CENTCOM reports 12 ships redirected, 2 disabled and 2 boarded to enforce the blockade; the blockade remains in effect and the pause comes as President Trump reportedly halted escalation due to a diminished stockpile of interceptors.
Ukrainian forces say they struck three Russian targets overnight—a tanker in the Black Sea, a pontoon crossing near Novoekonomichne in Donetsk, and a concentration of Russian troops in Horlivka—as part of broader efforts to weaken Moscow’s military and logistical capabilities; no casualties were reported.
Suspected Somali pirates boarded and seized the oil tanker Asana about 26 nautical miles off Hadramawt, Yemen, signaling a renewed piracy surge in the Gulf of Aden as navies monitor the situation and shipping routes risk rerouting through the Red Sea.
UK authorities say a tanker was boarded by unauthorized personnel about 65 nautical miles off Yemen as seven gunmen hijacked MT Asana (Tanzanian-flagged and bound for Bosaso); Puntland officials attribute the attack to Somali pirates, marking the second hijacking near Yemen in three months amid a piracy resurgence in the Gulf of Aden.
Armed assailants boarded a small tanker off Yemen’s coast and took control, prompting a South Korean warship to be dispatched to the area. The incident unfolds amid escalating Iran-US hostilities and Tehran’s threat to disrupt key Red Sea shipping routes, with US strikes and Iranian retaliation contributing to tighter, more volatile shipping traffic through the region and higher oil prices.
Ukraine says it attacked a Russian oil tanker in the Black Sea amid ongoing fighting that has broader effects on Crimea’s economy and travel, with reports of fuel shortages, canceled flights, and continued regional tensions.
An AP source says a disabled oil tanker received warnings before the United States fired on it, shedding light on the sequence of events amid mounting regional tensions.
US Central Command says it fired precision munitions into the engine room of the MT Settebello after the crew failed to follow directions, killing three Indian sailors and rescuing 21 others; India protested the strike as regional tensions rise with other attacks on ships carrying Indian crews.
Italy’s defense ministry awarded Airbus a €1.4 billion contract to procure six A330 MRTT multi-role tanker transport aircraft, a deal projected to run about ten years and which would make Italy the 19th nation to operate the tanker after previously pursuing Boeing’s KC-46 Pegasus; first delivery timing was not disclosed.
Trump told CNBC he was surprised to learn a 'gift from China' was found on a seized Iran-bound tanker; the White House did not comment, and China emphasized its arms exports are strictly controlled, highlighting ongoing U.S.–Iran tensions and broader U.S.–China strategic dynamics around the Strait of Hormuz.