Two India tankers pass through Hormuz as Trump-Iran standoff simmers

By Jonathan Saul, Nidhi Verma and Saurabh Sharma

LONDON/NEW DELHI, March 23 (Reuters) - Two tankers bound for India sailed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, as U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to attack Iran’s power plants unless Tehran drops threats that have effectively closed the Gulf.

Gulf nations including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have seen exports blocked since the war in Iran began on February 28 and Tehran launched attacks on ships and threatened any passing through the Gulf’s southern strait.

The two India-flagged tankers were carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) used mostly for cooking in India. They loaded at anchorages in Kuwait and the UAE, LSEG ship-tracking data showed.

The Pine Gas, which loaded in UAE waters, sailed through the strait followed by the Jag Vasant carrying LPG from Kuwait, ship-tracking data on the MarineTraffic platform showed.

Hundreds of vessels have dropped anchor in and outside of the Gulf, cutting off food and other vital imports and energy exports, mostly to Asia and Europe.

India's Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, confirmed that the two tankers, carrying more than 92,000 tons of LPG, had sailed through Hormuz and were expected to reach ports in India between March 26-28.

The Pine Gas broadcast a message identifying itself as "India ship and crew", LSEG ship-tracking data showed.

Some 20,000 seafarers remain stranded inside the Gulf, according to the UN's shipping agency.

Iran on Monday threatened to lay sea mines if Trump followed through with attacks, state media reported, while suggesting non-belligerent states might coordinate passage with Iran, leaving analysts remaining cautious.

"Iran is assessed highly likely still capable of damaging shipping transiting the Strait of Hormuz," British maritime security group Ambrey said in a note.

There remains a "heightened risk of miscalculation in congested waterways", the U.S. Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Center said in an advisory.

IRAN STILL SAILING

On Sunday, a tanker carrying oil products also passed through the strait bound for India, Kpler data showed.

Disruption to tanker traffic through the strait has cut the world’s supply of oil and oil products by some 20%.

"Three weeks into the Hormuz shutdown, crude tanker markets remain distorted," shipbroker Clarksons said on Monday.

"Traffic through the strait is down about 95% from pre-war levels, with Iranian-linked ships still moving."

At least 14 Iran-flagged loaded oil tankers have reached Asian waters around the Singapore Strait since February 28, according to analysis from U.S. advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), which monitors Iran-related tanker traffic.

It’s "business as usual" for Iran, UANI senior adviser Charlie Brown said.

Iran on Sunday received its first Western-linked ship since the war began when a Greek-operated dry bulk carrier delivered grain from Canada to the port of Bandar Imam Khomeini, according to data from Lloyd's List Intelligence and a source familiar with the matter.

The vessel had sailed from Canada via the Cape before reaching the Gulf, MarineTraffic ship-tracking showed.

A meeting of the UN’s shipping agency agreed last week to work towards a safe maritime corridor to evacuate ships from the Gulf and protect stranded seafarers. No timeframe was given for the initiative.

Some 15 Iran-flagged oil tankers are sailing back to the Gulf having delivered their cargoes in Asia, according to the UANI.