11 VLCCs Damaged in October as Weekly Hormuz Transits Fall
Key Facts
Transits by vessels not linked to Iran through the Strait of Hormuz fell to 104 in the week of October 5–11, from 126 the previous week, while oil tanker and gas ship transits declined to 81 from 105. Lloyd’s List Intelligence said total weekly traffic fell 17%, but remained 31% above the weekly average in August. The month saw the highest number of reported attacks on commercial shipping since March, according to a British military monitor cited by the Associated Press. The figures show transits continued despite rising risks, with activity down markedly from the previous week. The traffic pattern also does not mean oil shipments through the strait have stopped.
In a separate estimate reported by Reuters, 11 very large crude carriers were damaged during October, among more than 30 vessels of this class damaged since the conflict began, according to a review of the International Maritime Organization’s list and MarineTraffic data. This tally differs from the number of reported attacks on commercial shipping, as it covers damaged tankers in a specific class. A VLCC has a capacity of about 1.9 million to 2.2 million barrels of WTI crude, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Actual cargo volumes vary by crude type, so the capacity is not a fixed figure for every tanker. Targeting these vessels is particularly significant because they carry large cargoes through one of the most important oil trade routes.
Some tankers continued to move oil at night along a route protected by U.S. forces near Oman’s coast, before transferring the cargo to other tankers in the Gulf of Oman, according to the Associated Press. The agency described the method as the “dark shuttle” and said it helped restore oil shipments from the Gulf to levels close to those before the war. But the operations came at a high cost in time and money, as well as risks to seafarers. The arrangement shows how cargo flows continued through alternative transport arrangements amid disruption to regular routes. It also highlights that continued supplies do not mean transport is proceeding at the usual pace or cost.
U.S. Energy Information Administration data show the scale of the decline in flows through the strait during the conflict: average crude oil and petroleum liquids shipments were 4.9 million barrels a day in the second quarter of 2026, compared with 21.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, before the conflict began. For comparison, the average was 20.7 million barrels a day in 2024 and 20.9 million in the first half of 2025. The agency said the disruption to flows pushed crude prices higher and increased their volatility through most of the second quarter. The front-month Brent futures contract reached $118 a barrel on April 29, before falling to $72 on June 26. These figures reflect the impact of the disruption on flows and prices in that quarter and do not measure price movements in October.
As an alternative route for crude exports, Saudi Aramco Chief Executive Amin Nasser said the capacity of the kingdom’s East-West pipeline rose from 2 million barrels a day to 7 million barrels a day in October. The pipeline links production areas on the Gulf coast with export ports on the Red Sea, allowing larger volumes to be transported outside the Strait of Hormuz route. The capacity increase came as transits through the strait continued, but fell week on week, while shipping faced rising risks. Data for the same week show oil tankers and gas ships recorded 81 transits, compared with 105 the previous week. The pipeline’s increased capacity provides additional export capacity for Saudi Arabia, while oil transfers continued through the strait and routes near Oman.