LONDON, July 9 (Reuters) - Oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has nearly halted as shipping risks have risen after the U.S. renewed airstrikes on Iran, prompting a response from Tehran in the Gulf.
So far on Thursday, only two tankers have passed through the strait in the early morning hours. One of them is the crude supertanker Berg 1, which loaded cargo at Iran's Kharg Island and is under U.S. sanctions, according to data from Kpler.
The other vessel is the Marshall Islands-flagged chemical tanker Well Sail, which also traversed the strait. Its last loading was near Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, based on ship tracking data from LSEG.
Sources in the shipping industry report that ships are increasingly turning off their public AIS tracking systems. This makes it more challenging to track all vessels in the area.
“Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has essentially stopped, reflecting the current risk perception more than any statements from Washington or Tehran,” noted Jorge Leon, head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, in a report.
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On Thursday, Iranian forces attacked U.S. military facilities in nearby Gulf states in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Iran's southern coast and eastern provinces, jeopardizing a truce that has been in place for three weeks.
This latest escalation in the four-month conflict began earlier this week when three tankers were attacked in the strait, an act attributed to Tehran by the U.S.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Navy stated on Thursday that U.S. strikes and their interference with shipping routes were hindering the gradual reopening of the strait. They warned that any further U.S. intervention would result in a "crushing response."
Prior to the outbreak of conflict on February 28, when the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran, the Strait of Hormuz accounted for about 20% of global oil supplies.
In the past two weeks, daily traffic had increased to its highest levels since the start of the conflict, averaging 40 ships in transit. However, this is still significantly lower than the pre-conflict norm of 125 to 140 ships daily.
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Some war insurers have advised shipping firms to pause journeys through the strait, while others are reassessing their policy terms due to the recent attacks on vessels, according to sources from the insurance industry.
“The situation regarding the reopening of the Hormuz Strait looks more fragile after this latest escalation,” stated ship broker Clarksons in a report.
Among the vessels targeted this week was the Marshall Islands-flagged Qatari LNG tanker Al Rekayyat, which is currently stranded off the coast of Oman, awaiting salvage after being hit by a projectile on Tuesday, which caused a fire in its engine room.
Despite initial fears of an explosion, industry sources report that the risk is currently low, and the cargo of liquefied natural gas appears safe.
The Marshall Islands registry, one of the leading flag states globally, confirmed to Reuters that there were no injuries or environmental issues related to the incident involving the Al Rekayyat.
“As recent incidents have shown, the marine war market is now facing the threat of potentially significant losses involving valuable vessels,” commented one marine war underwriter, who requested anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the situation.