19 vessels with energy cargo for India stranded in Strait of Hormuz

New Delhi: As many as 19 ships with LPG, crude oil and LNG meant for India are currently stranded in the Strait of Hormuz due to the escalating war in West Asia.

At an inter-ministerial briefing on the fallout of developments in West Asia, Rajesh Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, said 10 foreign-flagged vessels with energy cargo for India are currently stranded.

These include 3 vessels with LPG, four crude oil tankers and three liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.

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Besides these, there are Indian-flagged vessels. These include three LPG tankers, one LNG carrier and four crude oil tankers. One empty tanker is being filled with LPG.

The vessels were among the 500-odd ships that were struck in the narrow strait amid the widening West Asia conflict.

So far, eight Indian flagged vessels have sailed out safely. These include two LPG carriers, BW TYR and BW ELM, carrying a combined LPG cargo of about 94,000 tonnes, which safely transited the war-hit zone in the last couple of days, he said.

While BW TYR is proceeding towards Mumbai with an expected arrival on March 31, BW ELM is en route to New Mangalore with an estimated arrival date of April 1, he said.

The US and Israel attacks on Iran and Tehran's sweeping retaliation have all but halted shipping through the strait - the narrow shipping lane that is a conduit for oil and gas exports from Gulf countries to the world. Iran, however, last week said "non-hostile vessels" may transit the waterway after coordinating with Iranian authorities.

"Our first priority is to get Indian flagged vessels out," Sinha said. "We are yet to reach the stage where we start sending back vessels (for refills)." He was asked whether India is considering sending vessels that have already discharged cargo at domestic ports back to Gulf countries to lift additional supplies.

He said his ministry has been closely monitoring the evolving situation in West Asia, particularly with regard to the safety of Indian seafarers, vessel movements and port operations.

"All Indian seafarers in the region are safe, and no incident involving Indian-flagged vessels has been reported in the past 24 hours. The situation has remained stable over the last 72 hours as well," he said.

Previously, four Indian-flagged LPG tankers had safely sailed through the strait. Pine Gas and Jag Vasant, carrying 92,612 tonnes of LPG, reached Indian ports between March 26 and March 28. Prior to that, MT Shivalik and MT Nanda Devi, carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG, had reached Mundra port in Gujarat on March 16 and Kandla port, respectively, on March 17.

Besides, the Indian-flagged oil tanker Jag Laadki, with 80,886 tonnes of crude oil from the UAE, reached Mundra on March 18. Another tanker, Jag Prakash, carrying gasoline from Oman to Africa, had previously safely crossed the strait and is en route to Tanzania.

There are 18 Indian-flagged vessels on the west side of the strait, with 485 seafarers, he said.

Two other vessels are stranded on the east side.

Among the vessels on the west side are LPG carriers Jag Vikram, Green Asha and Green Sanvi. One empty vessel is being filled with LPG.

Other Indian flagged vessels in the zone include one liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker, four crude oil tankers, one transporting chemical products, three container ships, and two bulk carriers. Additionally, one vessel is a dredger, and three were in dry dock undergoing routine maintenance.

Originally, there were 28 Indian-flagged vessels in the Strait of Hormuz when the war in West Asia broke out. Of these, 24 were on the West side of the Strait and four on the East side. In the last few days, six vessels from the west side and two from the east have managed to sail to safety.