US Blockade Leaves 50 Tankers Waiting Off Iran; September Crude Loadings Fall to Zero

At least 50 tankers carrying Iranian crude and other cargoes are waiting off Iran's coast as the US maritime blockade of the country continues.

Bloomberg reported on October 6 that United Against Nuclear Iran, a nonprofit group known as UANI, said in its regular shipping report that at least 50 vessels, mostly tankers carrying Iranian crude, were waiting in waters near Iran. That was little changed from about two months earlier.

The vessels include not only crude tankers, but also ships carrying petroleum products and liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG. In the Persian Gulf, at least 11 loaded tankers were anchored east of Kharg Island, Iran's main crude export hub, while another five were waiting farther south.

Empty tankers that need to return to Iran are also staying in the Indo-Pacific region to avoid the US blockade. UANI said 20 Iranian-flagged vessels were anchored near Sri Lanka, with one more waiting near Oman.

The US is effectively enforcing a full maritime blockade to intensify economic pressure on Iran. US military data show 130 vessels have changed course during the operation so far.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Axios that Iran would, this week, "for the first time in history," have no crude oil at sea.

The impact of the blockade is showing up directly in Iran's oil exports. As of October 5, UANI had identified no tankers loading crude at Kharg Island.

According to Bloomberg's preliminary estimates based on vessel-tracking data, Iran did not load crude onto tankers at all in September. It was the first time since the war began in February that the country's monthly crude loadings fell to zero.