Iraq exports through Hormuz fell to 10 million barrels in April – oil minister BAGHDAD—Iraq’s oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz plunged to just 10 million barrels in April, the country’s new oil minister said Saturday. A founding member of the OPEC oil cartel, Iraq normally exports the majority of its crude through the crucial waterway. But like other exporters in the oil-rich region, it has been left scrambling for alternative routes after Iran blockaded the strait. “Iraq previously exported 93 million barrels per month through the Strait of Hormuz. But last April we exported only 10 million barrels due to the war,” said Bassem Mohammed Khudair during a handover ceremony to assume his new post. Iraq’s southern oil terminals received in April two oil tankers to load Iraqi oil. Last month, Baghdad said it had reached “understandings” with the United States and Iran to reduce the impact of the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran announced it would allow Iraqi shipping to transit the key waterway. Iraq previously exported an average of 3.5 million barrels daily, accounting for some 90 percent of its budget revenues. Due to the waterway disruption, Iraq began exporting crude using tanker trucks through Syria, after resuming a limited amount of oil exports via pipeline to the Turkish port of Ceyhan. Iran’s state television said on Friday that the naval forces of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards were allowing more ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which, in peacetime, accounts for roughly a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. /apl
Iraq exports through Hormuz fell to 10 million barrels in April – oil minister BAGHDAD—Iraq’s oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz plunged to just 10 million barrels in April, the country’s new oil minister said Saturday. A founding member of the OPEC oil cartel, Iraq normall…
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Anadolu reports that shipping traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait has decreased by 88% in the past 24 hours, dropping from an average of 33 daily transits to only four vessels, according to IMF PortWatch data. This reduction follows reports that Houthi forces have advanced to key coastal locations, including Mokha and Mayun Island, coinciding with a 91% decline in oil and chemical tanker passage.
Satellite imagery shows extensive damage to a key Saudi Arabian oil pipeline, a development that has reportedly disrupted operations. The assessment is based on a machine-translated headline from an Arabic-language source, so the specific extent of the impact remains unverified.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that 93,864 people have been newly displaced in Yemen following recent clashes between Saudi-backed government forces and Houthi militias, while the UNHCR noted that hostilities along the western coast have prompted some individuals to cross into Djibouti.
These developments have raised concerns regarding the safety of humanitarian and commercial shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, as nearly half of Yemen’s population reportedly requires assistance amid growing food insecurity.
The Japanese Shipowners' Association reportedly estimates that Saudi oil deliveries to Asia could take approximately 100 days round trip if the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is closed, a significant increase from the current 40-day route via the Strait of Hormuz.
This potential disruption, which Asashi notes would raise transportation costs, is described in the source material as following the current blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, an event the article attributes to a US-Iran conflict ongoing since February 28.