Tankers on Move as Saudis Pump More Oil
Supertankers idled by the Persian Gulf crisis are finally heading for new destinations as other oil producers boost exports to offset the shortfall from Iraq and Kuwait.
Shipping sources said Wednesday that the fleet of tankers waiting in the Gulf of Oman is thinning as Saudi Arabia and its gulf allies pump more oil.
In the first weeks of the crisis, more than 100 tankers and freighters crowded the waters off Al Fujayrah, which lies outside the Strait of Hormuz and is not subject to the “war risk” insurance surcharges on Persian Gulf ports.
Shipping sources said the number has dropped to between 70 and 80 and more are expected to leave soon.
“The feeling of movement is definitely there,” said a shipping agent at Al Fujayrah in the United Arab Emirates.
They said tankers are beginning to head back into the gulf to load oil from Saudi Arabia, which has boosted production to almost 8 million barrels a day from 5.4 million. Another destination is Abu Dhabi, which has raised production to about 1.8 million barrels a day from 1.2 million barrels.
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