US Allies Turn Tables on Iran with Secret Oil Transits

The US and its Middle Eastern allies have devised a new strategy to transport oil through the Strait of Hormuz, avoiding Iranian drone attacks.

Aided by the US Navy, Saudi, Kuwaiti, Qatari, and Emirati oil companies have chartered tankers to switch off their Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponders and transit the strait under military escort at night.

This 'dark' strategy has proven effective, with oil traffic through the Strait of Hormuz averaging between 8 million and 9 million barrels per day, roughly double what analysts would suggest based on transponder data.

Middle Eastern oil producers have rerouted about 5 million barrels of oil per day that would have been destined for awaiting tankers in the Persian Gulf through their East-West pipeline to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.