By Weilun Soon May 16 (Bloomberg) – A supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil, which was stopped by US forces days ago after passing through the Strait of Hormuz, has now resumed its journey to Vietnam...
By Weilun Soon
May 16 (Bloomberg) – A supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil, which was stopped by US forces days ago after passing through the Strait of Hormuz, has now resumed its journey to Vietnam.
The tanker, named Agios Fanourios I, received permission from US authorities to continue, according to its manager, Eastern Mediterranean Maritime, based in Athens. By early Sunday, the fully loaded ship had passed the line where the US is enforcing a blockade on Iranian shipping.
US Central Command in Florida did not respond to a call or an email seeking comment.
The VLCC left the Persian Gulf a week ago and went through the Strait of Hormuz, which is currently blockaded by Iran. However, as it got closer to the US naval blockade, the tanker turned back into the Gulf of Oman, according to ship-tracking data. At that time, US Central Command stated the vessel was turned away to enforce the blockade.
PetroVietnam Oil Corp., which represents Vietnam's national energy company, sent a letter to the US last week requesting the tanker’s release. The letter stated, “This cargo is extremely important to the Nghi Son Refinery, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and the Vietnamese people. Any further delay could halt refinery operations, affecting millions of Vietnamese consumers, businesses, public services, and industries.”
The tanker’s movement comes after a two-day summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, where both leaders agreed the strait should remain open but did not make significant progress on this issue. Traffic through the waterway is still much lower than pre-war levels, despite a slight increase in recent days as some crude tankers leave the Persian Gulf.