Dmitri Toms Iran's top joint military command said it is closing the Strait of Hormuz to all ships, including oil tankers and commercial vessels, "until further notice" after the U.S. military launched a fresh wave of strikes against multiple targets in Iran. But analysts say a growing number of ships are escaping the strait using a risky route close to Oman's coastline, turning off their t...
Dmitri Toms Iran's top joint military command said it is closing the Strait of Hormuz to all ships, including oil tankers and commercial vessels, "until further notice" after the U.S. military launched a fresh wave of strikes against multiple targets in Iran. But analysts say a growing number of ships are escaping the strait using a risky route close to Oman's coastline, turning off their transponders to sneak through undetected by Iran. Some 15 ships per day - mostly oil tankers - are going in and out via the Omani route, protected by U.S. air cover, according to a report Wednesday in the Financial Times . Dan Smoot, the head of Vantor, which tracks ships by satellite imaging, said at the WSJ CEOCouncil summit in London on Wednesday that there was a "tremendous amount" of shippingactivity through the Strait of Hormuz that was "outside the news right now." The closure of Hormuz has cut off ~12M bbl/day of oil from the market, but the Energy Aspects consultancy estimated that Iraq, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates currently are shipping ~3M bbl/day of crude through the strait. Energy Aspects founder Amrita Sen said the dark transits meant the world's refineries could increase production and avoid "summer tightness, in theory." Vessels wanting to pass through the waterway reportedly are instructed to request permission from U.S. Central Command, which then provides the coordinates of the Omani route and issues instructions for ships to turn off their GPS signalling systems and all electronics, and are advised to transit under cover of darkness. Some shipping executives are worried about a collision in the narrow passage, with one telling FT that "we are talking a single-lane route with two-way traffic on it with loaded ships who do not have the maneuverability, like driving down a country lane at night without your lights on." President Trump claimed Wednesday that a secret U.S. mission to help tankers through the Strait of Hormuz has led to more than 100M ...
The company's AI growth is spectacular, but a closer look at its customer list reveals a multi-billion-dollar question mark investors should not ignore.
The company's AI growth is spectacular, but a closer look at its customer list reveals a multi-billion-dollar question mark investors should not ignore.