Chinese Supertankers Escape Houthi Blockade in Red Sea

Two Chinese supertankers carrying a combined 4 million barrels of Saudi Arabian oil have escaped the Houthi's Red Sea blockade. The vessels, Xin Long Yang and Cosnew Lake, were chartered by Unipec, the trading arm of Asia's largest refiner Sinopec, and loaded crude at Saudi Arabia's port of Yanbu earlier this week.

The tankers made a U-turn in the middle of the Red Sea on Tuesday, but resumed their journey southward late on Wednesday. They exited the Red Sea via the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Thursday, evading the blockade imposed by Yemen's Houthi rebels. The Houthis have been targeting Saudi oil shipments, including two tankers that were attacked earlier this week.

The Red Sea blockade is worsening global energy supply disruption, coming at a time when the key Strait of Hormuz has practically shut due to the resumption of fighting between the U.S. and Iran. At least 27 vessels, including five oil tankers, crossed the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Wednesday, down from 38 the previous day.