Iran sends millions of oil barrels to China through Strait of Hormuz even as war chokes the waterway
The Rotterdam hopper dredger, operated by Van Oord, remains anchored in Muscat, Oman, on March 9, 2026, after Iran vowed to close the Strait of Hormuz amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran.
Benoît Tessier | Reuters
Iran has continued to ship large quantities of crude oil to China via the Strait of Hormuz, even as the US-Israeli war with Iran has endangered broader supplies through the critical waterway.
Iran has sent at least 11.7 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz since the war began on Feb. 28, all of which went to China, Samir Madani, co-founder of TankerTrackers, told CNBC on Tuesday.
The company monitors ship movements with satellite images and allows the capture of ships that cannot be detected when tracking systems are turned off. There are many ships “the darkness is gone” After Tehran threatened to attack any ship that tried to pass through the waterway.
Shipping intelligence data provider Kpler estimates that about 12 million barrels of crude oil have passed through the strait since the war began. “Given that China has been the main buyer of Iranian crude oil in recent years, a significant portion of these barrels could end up there,” said Kpler crude oil analyst Nhway Khin Soe, adding that it was becoming increasingly difficult to confirm the final destination of these ships.
China’s National Energy Administration did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway critical for transporting nearly a fifth of the world’s oil and gas, has slowly diminished since the war began last month, with tankers largely avoiding the beleaguered waterway.
Ten ships in or near the Strait of Hormuz Less than two weeks after the war began, it came under attack from Tehran, killing at least seven sailors on board, according to the International Maritime Organization.
Oil tankers passing through the Strait “must be very careful,” an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said in an interview with CNBC’s Dan Murphy on Monday.
Madani said that according to satellite images, three of the six tankers that have left Iran since February 28 have Iranian flags.
As oil prices rise on fears of supply disruptions, US President Donald Trump tells Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade that ships stranded near the passageway “show some courage” and proceed along the channel. “There is nothing to fear, they have no navy, we sank all their ships,” Trump said.
Alternative export point?
The Kharg island terminal, located about 25 miles off the coast of mainland Iran, has long been the country’s primary oil export facility. Approximately 90% of crude oil exports occur before tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
Now Iran has also resumed tanker loading from the Jask oil and gas terminal along the Gulf of Oman, south of the Strait of Hormuz; This could add additional capacity to crude oil shipments.
According to TankerTrackers, an Iranian ship was loading 2 million barrels of crude oil; This is only the fifth such installation in the last five years.
Soe said the renewed activity at Jask signals that Tehran is exploring alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz, but it remains unclear to what extent it could serve as a viable route for shipments.
Iran’s Jask oil facility, the only crude export outlet in the Arabian Sea that completely bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, is rarely used because it appears to be far less efficient.
Madani said it can take up to 10 days to load a single Very Large Crude Carrier, a class of supertankers built for long-distance oil transportation. “It has good value in terms of local propaganda, but not so much in terms of logistics advantage.” By comparison, loading a VLCC on Kharg Island takes about a day or two.
China is stocking
While Tehran continued to export to China, shipments of approximately 1.22 million barrels per day (mbd) remained significantly below levels before the war began.
Iran exported 2.16 barrels of oil in February, the highest since July 2018, according to Kpler’s Soe, all of which was destined for China as Beijing accumulated reserves to reduce potential energy supply risk.
As Beijing stepped up efforts to build up its oil stockpile in the first two months of the year, its crude imports rose 15.8% from a year earlier, customs data showed on Tuesday.
According to Kpler, Iran’s crude oil shipments also reached a record high of 3.78 mbp in the week of February 16, more than doubling the previous weekly average of approximately 1.48 mbp.
Over the years, China has built up large stocks of crude oil. estimated stockpile of 1.2 billion barrels According to the Atlantic Council, as of January, it is stated that the demand can be met within 3 to 4 months.
And that accumulation gained renewed urgency this year as U.S. President Donald Trump targeted Venezuela and Iran, two of Beijing’s most critical supply sources. The US captured Venezuela’s leader Nicolas Maduro in a military strike at the beginning of the year, while Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the US-Israeli war against Iran last month.
The Middle East war shows little sign of abating, keeping tensions around the Strait of Hormuz high and global energy markets on edge.
Oil prices rose to nearly $120 a barrel on Monday after many oil-producing countries in the Persian Gulf began restricting production and traffic through the Strait of Hormuz came to a virtual halt; This has reached levels not seen in four years.
Global leaders, along with Group of Seven leaders including the United States, are scrambling to contain the effects of a potential oil shock. reportedly Given the release of the largest oil reserves ever and Trump signaling that the war may end soon.
Oil prices retreated due to the influence of the USA WTI Crude oil for April delivery fell to around $84.9 per barrel as of 10:50 p.m. ET Tuesday, with the global benchmark Brent May delivery at $88.9 per barrel.
— CNBC’s Evelyn Cheng and Sam Meredith contributed to this report.
