The US military has quietly established a shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz to transport millions of barrels of oil each day, according to an Axios report citing two US officials.
The operation, which has been underway for the last several weeks, involves 15-20 tankers entering and exiting the strait each night through a southern channel along the coast of Oman. About 10 million barrels of oil a day, roughly half the pre-war volume, are being transported out of the strait and into the global energy market through the discreet shipping corridor.
How does the US-led operation work?
The US-led operation involves more than escorting oil-laden tankers. The US military is also helping empty tankers travel from the Arabian Sea through the Strait of Hormuz into Gulf ports to collect oil before returning through the strait.
According to Axios, the operation is coordinated by a US task force based at Army headquarters in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, along with regional Gulf partners.
The task force creates a daily list of ships coming out of the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz and into the Arabian Sea, as well as a list of rented empty tankers that travel from the Arabian Sea through the strait and into the ports of Gulf countries to pick up more oil.
Tankers are organised into scheduled inbound and outbound convoys that transit the southern channel under US military guidance. Each night, the ships are scheduled to move in one large outbound line during a designated time slot and one large inbound line during a separate time slot. The ships then transit through the southern channel based on US military guidance. The US Air Force has fighter jets protecting the tankers against Iranian cruise missiles and drones.
Over the past two weeks, 15-20 tankers have crossed the strait each night, with average daily oil exports now approaching 10 million barrels. On some days, exports have reached 15 million-20 million barrels, reported Axios.
How was the oil corridor established?
The operation was likely made possible by a recent two-week US Central Command military campaign that degraded Iran’s radar and maritime surveillance systems.
“There is a tremendous amount of oil coming out of the Strait of Hormuz,” US President Donald Trump told Axios. He said the US is not negotiating with Iran at the moment. “They are wasting time. It’s a waste of time to negotiate with them,” Trump said. “The Iranians still have some fight left, but overall they are a shell of themselves,” he added.
The development comes as Trump has announced the most crushing economic operation against Iran, warning that countries, banks and businesses providing Tehran with financial or commercial lifelines could themselves face severe economic consequences. In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said Iran had ‘failed to take’ the opportunity to make a deal and would be subjected to ‘economic warfare and isolation on an unprecedented scale’.
Strait of Hormuz emerges as key flashpoint in Iran war
The Strait of Hormuz has become a major flashpoint since the US-Iran war broke out on February 28, with traffic through the waterway repeatedly disrupted amid conflicting claims over whether it is open or effectively blocked.
US President Donald Trump has even declared the strategic waterway a US territory. The strait is one of the world’s most important oil chokepoints, carrying roughly 20 per cent of the world’s oil consumption and about a quarter of globally traded oil. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has repeatedly been disrupted since the Iran war broke out, with the US saying the waterway is open while Iran maintains that it remains blocked.
