Three stranded supertankers passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, while seven empty Qatar-linked liquefied natural gas tankers have entered in recent weeks in an early sign Gulf gas shipping may be resuming, ship-tracking data showed. Iranian-linked tankers also continued to transit the vital waterway, according to the data, with traffic picking up on Monday as U.S.-Iran talks progressed.
The first round of talks, which began on Sunday, concluded a day later with both sides agreeing on a roadmap toward a permanent deal within 60 days. The U.S. also announced a waiver until August 21 on sanctions, easing concerns over global oil and LNG supplies and pushing prices lower. More crude oil cargoes stranded in the Gulf since the start of the war are expected to make their way out now, analysts say, while a growing number of sanctioned tankers have been plying the strait to load and export Iranian oil after the U.S. waived sanctions.
Two Trafigura-operated Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), each carrying 2 million barrels of crude, exited the strait on Tuesday.
One, Dubai Energy, was chartered by Taiwanese state energy firm CPC, and the second, Legio X Equestris, was chartered by TotalEnergies, LSEG and Kpler data showed.
Another VLCC, Universal Glory, chartered by South Korean refiner GS Caltex, also left the Strait on Tuesday with 2 million barrels of Saudi crude onboard, the data showed.
Two sanctioned Suezmax tankers — Sobar and Sarak — were heading into the strait on Tuesday, the data showed. Each of them can carry 1 million barrels of oil. U.S. President Donald Trump said in a social media post on Tuesday that 19 million barrels of oil flowed out of the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.
CPC, TotalEnergies and Trafigura were not immediately available for comment, and GS Caltex declined to comment.
Reuters was not able to independently verify that number.
