An oil tanker anchored off Kuwait reported late on Wednesday a large explosion and a subsequent leak from a cargo tank, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a Royal Navy-sponsored organization, said on Thursday as the war in the Middle East escalates and tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has come to a halt.
UKMTO said it had received a report of an incident 30 nautical miles south east of Mubarak Al Kabeer, Kuwait.
“The Master of a tanker at anchor, reports witnessing and hearing a large explosion on the port side then seeing a small craft leave the vicinity,” UKMTO said.
“There is oil in the water coming from a cargo tank which could have some environmental impact, the vessel has taken on water, there are no fires reported and the crew are safe and well,” according to the incident report at UKMTO, which added that authorities are investigating.
The interior ministry of Kuwait later said in a written statement carried by the Wall Street Journal that the incident occurred outside Kuwait’s territorial waters, at least 60 kilometers, or 37 miles, away from the port of Mubarak Al Kabeer.
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As the war in the Middle East escalates, tankers are stuck at anchor either side of the critical Strait of Hormuz, the world’s busiest oil transit chokepoint through which the equivalent of 20% of global daily oil consumption passes.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday pledged the United States would “immediately” provide “political risk insurance and guarantees” for tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
“If necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible,” President Trump said.
“While the U.S. has pledged military escorts and a financial safety net to break the “no-go zone,” the on-the-water reality remains one of extreme caution and paralysis,” Wanying Zhang, freight analyst at energy flows analytics firm Vortexa said.
Tanker traffic activity through the Strait of Hormuz has crashed from 40 vessels per day transiting in January, to a single tanker making the trip on March 3, according to Vortexa data.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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