Six Saudi-flagged very large crude carriers on Tuesday rerouted around southern Africa instead of transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as persistent security threats continue to disrupt global energy shipping despite efforts to strengthen maritime protection in the Middle East.
MarineTraffic said that the six ballast tankers altered course away from the Bab el-Mandeb and headed south through the Indian Ocean, with the first automatic identification system destination changes for five of the vessels recorded on July 30.
The tankers updated destinations that pointed to voyages around the Cape of Good Hope rather than through the Red Sea.
MarineTraffic said two tankers listed Durban as their destination, while another initially signaled Durban before changing to Algoa Bay and later Port Elizabeth. Two other tankers first indicated Gibraltar, before one of them later switched its destination to Durban on July 31.
The rerouting comes as maritime security conditions remain fragile across two of the world's key energy chokepoints.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations said on Tuesday that commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained below normal levels, with independent tracking data showing only single-digit numbers of tankers transiting in either direction.
UKMTO said attacks and harassment by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had intensified, including radio hailing, drone overflights and surveillance of merchant vessels.
The maritime agency also reported confirmed projectile strikes and near-misses involving merchant ships in Omani territorial waters and the approaches to the Hormuz, particularly along the Limah-Khasab axis.
The agency added that the risk from drifting or uncharted sea mines remained elevated, with mine danger areas still active near the traffic separation scheme.
Meanwhile, traffic through the Southern Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb has continued, but security concerns have increased following a previously confirmed Houthi attack on a Saudi-flagged tanker.
Saudi Arabia, in response, hosted military representatives from 43 countries and the European Union in Riyadh to discuss a proposed multinational maritime defence coalition covering the Bab el-Mandeb, southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Elsewhere, US Central Command said that as of Aug. 4, US forces had redirected 45 commercial vessels, disabled two vessels and boarded two others to ensure compliance with security measures in the region.
The latest rerouting by Saudi crude carriers underscores the continued reluctance among some operators to use the shorter Red Sea route despite the higher cost and longer voyage associated with sailing around Africa.