Ship-to-ship transfers keep Gulf oil moving outside Hormuz as direct traffic hits multi-month low
Ship-to-ship workarounds keep non-Iranian oil flowing despite Hormuz slowdown
Large volumes of oil from Gulf producers continue to reach global markets through ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman even as direct vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains sharply suppressed, maritime tracking data showed early on Wednesday (Aug. 26).
TankerTrackers reported at least 15 simultaneous ship-to-ship transfer operations underway in the Gulf of Oman involving roughly 25 million barrels of crude oil plus refined products.
The cargoes originated from nearly every country in the region except Iran, according to the firm.
A later update noted an additional set of transfers that included one Iranian LPG cargo.
The report suggests ship-to-ship activity in the Gulf of Oman has become a critical, if imperfect, "safety valve" for Gulf producers seeking to bypass the most dangerous segment of the route.
The activity underscores a key adaptation by regional exporters and shippers six months into the conflict, as per TankerTrackers.
Shuttle voyages
Rather than risking the most contested stretches of the Strait of Hormuz, operators use shorter “shuttle” voyages or dark transits (with Automatic Identification System transponders switched off) to move oil to larger tankers waiting outside the chokepoint.
The practice mirrors a technique long used by Iran to evade sanctions, now applied more broadly to keep non-Iranian barrels flowing while Iranian exports face intense US pressure and a naval blockade,
Latest Kpler data show Hormuz traffic at a three-month lowShip-tracking firm Kpler recorded just two commodity vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Monday — one very large gas carrier and one very large crude carrier, both entering from the Gulf of Oman.
That marked the lowest daily tally since early May and well below the recent 10-day average of about 14 vessels.
Figures can change as some ships sail with transponders offline, Marine Link reported.
Provisional data from Vortexa put Monday’s oil transits through the strait at about 5 million barrels per day. On a seven-day moving average through Aug. 23, Hormuz oil flows stood at roughly 6 million to 7 million barrels per day.
Before the conflict began in late February, the strait carried approximately one-fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, with daily vessel traffic typically in the range of 95 to 130 ships.
Commodity carrier traffic fell to an average of about 10 transits per day after Iran restricted the waterway in early March, rebounded temporarily to around 36 during a June interim understanding, then settled near 15 per day after hostilities resumed in July, according to analyses of Kpler data.
A large share of recent transits have been “dark” or unclassified, complicating precise counts. Iran has blacklisted dozens of tankers it says violated its passage rules and threatened action against vessels involved in ship-to-ship transfers with them.
What it means
The contrast is stark: significant volumes of regional (non-Iranian) oil continue moving via transfers outside the highest-risk zone of the chokepoint, while Iranian exports remain constrained.
Analysts note that every successful non-Iranian cargo that reaches market without full reliance on Iranian-controlled routes erodes Tehran’s longstanding claim that it can hold global energy flows hostage by threatening the strait.
US officials have described military escorts and enforcement actions as limiting Iran’s ability to close the waterway.
Iran maintains that the strait remains under its control and has rejected unilateral US measures.
Oil markets have partly adjusted to the lower but persistent flows and the workaround logistics.
Direct Hormuz throughput remains a fraction of pre-war levels, leaving the global supply picture sensitive to any escalation in attacks or enforcement.
