Third Iranian tanker passes U.S. blockade bound for Asia

Investing.com -- A third oil tanker fully loaded with Iranian crude has departed from the port of Chabahar and crossed the US blockade line en route to Asia, according to vessel tracking data compiled by Bloomberg.

The Suezmax tanker Sonia I, with a capacity to carry approximately 1 million barrels of oil, left the port near Iran's border with Pakistan on Tuesday. The ship's draft shows it is fully loaded and heading toward Singapore, a common waypoint for vessels bound for Asian markets.

The departure follows two earlier tankers, the very large crude carriers Hero II and Diona, which each carry about 2 million barrels of Iranian oil. Both vessels are heading toward the southern tip of India, the standard route to the Strait of Malacca near Singapore. Neither ship is displaying a destination.

All three tankers have crossed a line between Iran's border with Pakistan and the coastline of Oman east of the town of Sur, which has been marked on US maps as the blockade line of Iranian ports. Previously, Iran-linked ships approaching this line were turned back, boarded, or disabled by the US Navy.

Iranian media reported on Tuesday that the American blockade of Iranian ports, which started in mid-April, is being lifted.

The departures come days before a planned ceasefire signing that will allow Tehran to sell oil immediately.

You May Also Be Interested In

• United States Oil Fund (USO) call put ratio 1.2 calls to 1 put amid crude oil at $89
• Anduril in talks to raise funding at around $100 billion valuation - Reuters
• Netscout doubles Arbor Cloud DDoS mitigation capacity to 33 Tbps