An Iraqi government source told the Iraqi news outlet Shafagh News that Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) is holding intensive negotiations with foreign shipping companies to ensure the transport of the country’s oil through the Strait of Hormuz, and talks with a German company are close to reaching an agreement.
According to the report, the Iranian regime has agreed to allow oil tankers flying the Iraqi flag to pass through the strait, and Baghdad intends to use this authorization to transport its crude oil from southern Iraqi ports to global markets.
SOMO has entered negotiations with two shipping companies, one American and one German. The American company has refused to place the Iraqi flag on its tankers, while the German company has expressed its willingness to use the Iraqi flag when transporting oil from Iraqi ports through the Strait of Hormuz.
Ship Traffic Through the Strait of Hormuz Has Nearly Come to a Halt After Tanker Attacks
According to the source, under the understanding reached with the Iranian regime, Iraqi oil tankers will pay no transit fees to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
However, Baghdad still needs U.S. approval or authorization to finalize this arrangement, and Iraqi officials hope that permission will be granted soon.
According to Iraq’s Oil Ministry, the country exported about 49 million barrels of oil in July, with more than 30 million barrels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Bloomberg: Saudi Arabia has turned to covert oil transfers through the Strait of Hormuz
Bloomberg reported that Saudi Arabia has begun offering oil cargoes off the coast of Oman, a move that could indicate increased shipments through the Strait of Hormuz using the so-called “shuttling” method and covert tanker movements.
According to the report, Saudi Aramco has supplied oil cargoes through ship-to-ship transfers at locations including waters near the Port of Sohar in the Gulf of Oman. Bloomberg said the crude oil cargoes were most likely loaded at Saudi facilities inside the Persian Gulf.
Under this method, tankers carry cargoes from inside the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz before transferring them to other tankers in the Gulf of Oman. Some of these voyages are carried out with ships’ positioning systems and transmitters switched off so that their routes cannot be tracked.
The United Arab Emirates has previously used this method extensively to transport oil through the Strait of Hormuz, and Bloomberg’s report now suggests that Saudi Arabia may also be shifting a larger share of its exports through this route.
According to satellite data, tankers with a combined carrying capacity of at least 9 million barrels loaded cargoes over the past week at the Ras Tanura export facilities and nearby locations. At the same time, a significant number of Saudi very large crude carriers have gathered outside the Persian Gulf.
