U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday Iran had agreed to open the strait, while Iranian officials said they wanted the U.S. to fully lift its blockade of Iranian tankers.
Western shipping companies cautiously welcomed the announcements but said more clarity was needed, including on the presence of sea mines, before their vessels could transit.
Oslo/New Delhi:One Indian-flagged oil tanker crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, while at least four others trying to transit the choke point turned back after Iran signalled the strategic waterway was closed again.
More than a dozen tankers, including three sanctioned vessels, passed through the Strait of Hormuz after a 50-day blockade was lifted on Friday, shipping data showed, before Iran reimposed restrictions on Saturday and fired at some vessels.
Reopening the strait is key for Gulf producers to resume full oil and gas supplies to the world, and end what the International Energy Agency has called the worst-ever supply disruption.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday Iran had agreed to open the strait, while Iranian officials said they wanted the U.S. to fully lift its blockade of Iranian tankers.
Western shipping companies cautiously welcomed the announcements but said more clarity was needed, including on the presence of sea mines, before their vessels could transit.
Iran resumes restriction
The ships that passed through the strait on Friday and Saturday via Iranian waters south of Larak island were mainly older, non-Western-owned vessels and included four sanctioned ships, according to ship-tracking data.
Iran arranged passage for a limited number of oil tankers and commercial ships following prior agreements in negotiations, a spokesperson for Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said.
Other ships have been seen approaching the strait and turning back as Iran said it would maintain strict controls as long as the U.S. continues its blockade of Iranian ports.
The UK Navy reported on Saturday that Iranian gunboats fired at some ships attempting to cross the strait.
Some merchant vessels received radio messages from Iran’s navy saying the strait was shut again and that no ships were allowed to pass, shipping sources said on Saturday.
Ship-tracking data showed five vessels loaded with liquefied natural gas from Ras Laffan in Qatar approaching the strait on Saturday morning.
No LNG cargoes have transited the waterway since the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran began on February 28.
Hundreds of ships have been stuck in the Gulf since the conflict started and Tehran closed the strait, forcing Gulf oil and gas producers to sharply cut production.
Top producers such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq and Kuwait say they need steady tanker flows and unrestricted passage through the strait to resume normal export operations.
Oil tanker Desh Garima appeared to have successfully crossed the Strait on Saturday, ship tracking data showed. The Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) tanker is the 10th India-flagged vessel to have crossed the Strait since early March.
As of Saturday evening, it was sailing in the Gulf of Oman, according to ship tracking data from maritime data and intelligence platform MarineTraffic.
Marine Traffic data showed oil tankers Sanmar Herald, Desh Vaibhav and Desh Vibhor, along with bulk carrier Jag Arnav, reversing course near the chokepoint, taking the number of India-flagged ships in the Persian Gulf to 14.
State-run SCI owns Desh Vaibhav and Desh Vibhor, while Sanmar Herald is operated by Sanmar Shipping and Jag Arnav by Great Eastern Shipping Company.
According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a tanker reported being approached by two Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps gunboats and fired upon about 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman.
This may have prompted the Indian vessels to turn back.
In New Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs summoned the Iranian envoy to lodge a protest over the reported targeting of Indian vessels.
According to shipping monitor TankerTrackers.com, two India-flagged ships, including a supertanker carrying Iraqi crude, were forced to turn back after coming under fire.
The disruptions come as scores of commercial vessels and thousands of seafarers remain stranded in the Persian Gulf since the outbreak of the West Asia war on February 28, which has sharply curtailed movement through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait of Hormuz handles about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows, making it one of the world’s most critical energy arteries. Iran’s ability to disrupt traffic through the narrow passage has emerged as a key lever in the conflict.
The halt in transit has driven up energy prices, triggered supply shortages in parts of the world and forced some countries to ration fuel, underscoring the global impact of the standoff.
Agencies