First Loaded LNG Tanker Transits Strait of Hormuz

The liquefied natural gas tanker Mubaraz has successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first confirmed loaded LNG shipment to exit the waterway since hostilities between the United States and Iran escalated nearly two months ago. Shiptracking data indicates the vessel, which loaded cargo at Abu Dhabi National Oil Company's Das Island facility in the United Arab Emirates in early March, reappeared on April 27 after its signal had vanished around March 31. It is now passing the southern tip of India, signaling a Chinese terminal as its destination with an estimated arrival around May 15.

The Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of the world's LNG flows, has seen traffic drop to near zero levels due to reciprocal blockades imposed by Iran and the United States following the conflict's onset around February 28. The Mubaraz had lingered in the Persian Gulf for weeks before its transponder went silent, a common tactic among vessels navigating the high-risk route to evade detection amid jamming and delays in data transmission.

This transit follows an empty LNG tanker that exited the strait earlier in April, though no prior loaded LNG cargo had been confirmed....