Focus – Vortexa: More oil is flowing through the Strait of Hormuz

ISLAMABAD, September 29 (ATSH-DPA) – Oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have increased and currently stand at 65–70% of pre-war levels, according to the energy data company “Vortexa”.

The figure includes all petroleum products, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and refined products such as gasoline.

Compared with the pre-war period, around 80% of crude oil and condensates are currently passing through the strait, Vortexa said.

According to the company, the weekly average stood at 11.2 million barrels of crude oil per day, a figure also previously reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Amena Bakr, an analyst at the data company Kpler, also reported a recovery in Gulf oil exports.

Kpler data show that the Middle East’s main producers exported 12.8 million barrels per day in September, compared with 18.8 million barrels per day in February.

Military actions and Iranian threats have largely disrupted passage through the strait since the start of US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.

Vortexa partly attributes the clear rise in energy shipments since late July to the expansion of the so-called “shuttle fleet.”

US analysts and media have reported that tankers escorted by the US Navy are moving back and forth through the strait, carrying oil from loading terminals in the Gulf to tankers waiting outside the strait.

According to Vortexa, rising oil shipments from Saudi Arabia are also contributing to the export growth.