- At least 10 foreign-flagged ships carrying energy supplies to India are stranded in the Persian Gulf
- Eighteen India-flagged vessels with LPG, crude oil, and LNG are anchored west of the Strait of Hormuz
- The Strait of Hormuz is critical for India’s energy imports, carrying 40% of crude oil and 90% of LPG
At least 10 foreign-flagged ships, carrying energy supplies bound for India, are stranded in the Persian Gulf, according to the government. This is in addition to 18 India-flagged vessels-- with LPG, crude oil, and LNG-- that are anchored to the west of the Strait of Hormuz-- a crucial shipping route virtually paralysed by the Middle East war.
Speaking at a media briefing on the fallout of developments in West Asia, Rajesh Kumar Sinha, special secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, said of the 10 India-bound foreign-flagged ships, three are carrying critical liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), four are crude oil tankers, and three are liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.
Among the 18 Indian-flagged vessels, three are LPG tankers, one is an LNG carrier, and four are crude oil tankers. One empty tanker is being filled with LPG, he said, adding that 485 seafarers are on these ships.
The vessels were among the 500-odd ships that were struck in the narrow strait amid the widening West Asia conflict.
"The government's priority is to ensure that Indian-flagged vessels carrying India-bound cargo are allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz," Sinha stressed.
"The affected area is not just the Strait of Hormuz; areas outside of it also fall under the high-risk area (HRA)," he said, adding that commercial premiums that used to be 0.04 per cent of the insured value before the war have since gone up. "In one case, the premium now is 0.7 per cent of the insured value, and it could be even higher," he said.
The war, which erupted on February 28 when the United States and Israel began bombing Iran, has prompted Tehran to retaliate with strikes across the region and sharply restrict access to the strait-- a critical passage through which a fifth of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas passes in peacetime.
Iran, however, last week said "non-hostile vessels" may transit the waterway after coordinating with Iranian authorities.
8 Ships Crossed Hormuz
So far, eight Indian-flagged vessels have sailed out of the strait safely. These include two LPG carriers -- BW TYR and BW ELM -- carrying a combined LPG cargo of about 94,000 tonnes, which safely transited the war-hit zone in the last couple of days, Sinha said.
According to the official, while BW TYR is proceeding towards Mumbai with an expected arrival on March 31, BW ELM is en route to New Mangalore with an estimated arrival date of April 1.
When asked if New Delhi was considering sending vessels that have already discharged cargo at domestic ports back to Gulf countries to lift additional supplies, Sinha said, "Our first priority is to get Indian-flagged vessels out... We are yet to reach the stage where we start sending back vessels (for refills)."
The official assured that the government has been closely monitoring the evolving situation in West Asia, particularly with regard to the safety of Indian seafarers, vessel movements, and port operations.
"All Indian seafarers in the region are safe, and no incident involving Indian-flagged vessels has been reported in the past 24 hours. The situation has remained stable over the last 72 hours as well," he said.
India's Energy Security Efforts Amid War
Since the war in Iran started, four Indian-flagged LPG tankers had safely sailed through the strait. Pine Gas and Jag Vasant, carrying 92,612 tonnes of LPG, reached Indian ports between March 26 and March 28. Before that, MT Shivalik and MT Nanda Devi, carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG, had reached Mundra Port in Gujarat on March 16 and Kandla Port on March 17, respectively.
Besides, the Indian-flagged oil tanker Jag Laadki, with 80,886 tonnes of crude oil from the UAE, reached Mundra on March 18. Another tanker, Jag Prakash, carrying gasoline from Oman to Africa, had previously safely crossed the strait and is en route to Tanzania.
Originally, there were 28 Indian-flagged vessels in the Strait of Hormuz when the war in West Asia broke out. Of these, 24 were on the west side of the strait and four on the east side. In the last few days, six vessels from the west side and two from the east have managed to sail to safety.
Iran's chokehold on the strait has created a major headache for countries like India, which relies on imports to meet most of its energy needs. Around 40 per cent of India's crude oil, over 50 per cent of its LNG imports, and a whopping 90 per cent of its LPG imports are transited through Hormuz, making it critical for the country's energy security. New Delhi has been engaged with Tehran at the diplomatic level for the safe passage of Indian ships through the critical waterways.
