Oil Tanker Carrying Iraqi Cargo Seen Transiting Strait of Hormuz

(Bloomberg) -- An oil tanker carrying crude from Iraq appeared to be transiting the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint, a day after Iran said its neighbor had special exemption to use the waterway.

The Suezmax Ocean Thunder picked up its cargo from Iraq’s Basrah terminal in early March and is now bound for Malaysia, according to tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Such vessels can carry about 1 million barrels of crude. The Asian nation has also received dispensation to use the strait, which is blocked for most other countries.

The Iranian military said Saturday it had granted an exemption on shipping restrictions to “brotherly Iraq,” though it remained unclear how this would be implemented in practice. At the end of March, Malaysia said its tankers had been given permission to cross the vital sea corridor.

Tracking data show the Ocean Thunder traversing the strait via a narrow northerly route that takes ships between the Iranian islands of Larak and Qeshm. Recent recorded transits have taken that passage apparently approved by Tehran.

Tracking vessel movements can be an inexact science because of the potential for electronic interference with ships’ signals and the intentional disablement of transponders by pilots sailing through risky zones.

Oil traders have been closely watching the strait since it was effectively shuttered shortly after the US and Israel launched attacks on the Islamic Republic on Feb. 28. The closure has bolstered prices of crude oil and products such as jet fuel and diesel, threatening financial pain for consumers everywhere.

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