LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) – Recently, six supertankers flying the Saudi flag have altered their routes in the Gulf of Aden and are now heading towards southern Africa. This comes after threats from Yemen’s Houthi movement to attack Saudi shipping, as indicated by tracking data released on Monday.
These tankers, which were empty after returning from Asia, are traveling together toward southern Africa instead of passing through the Bab el-Mandeb strait in the southern Red Sea. This information was gathered from AIS ship tracking by LSEG and MarineTraffic.
One of the tankers, named Dilam, has Gibraltar listed as its destination according to the tracking data.
Bahri, the Saudi operator of the vessels, and other Saudi officials have not yet replied to requests for comments.
These tankers, capable of carrying up to two million barrels of crude oil each, chose to reroute around the Cape due to concerns about security, according to two trade sources who spoke based on their evaluations.
Taking this new route will add at least 25 extra days to their sailing time if they decide to return to Saudi ports in the Red Sea via the Suez Canal, according to calculations from Reuters.
On July 20, the Iran-aligned Houthis announced a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia, creating a new front in the ongoing conflict with the U.S. and its allies regarding Iran.
Recent Houthi attacks on ships linked to Saudi Arabia led the marine insurance market in London last week to expand its "high risk" zone in the Red Sea, now including areas near more Saudi Arabian ports.