Fresh attacks on tankers threaten recovery of Persian Gulf oil exports

Two oil supertankers came under fire while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on August 31, shattering a brief window of recovery in one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints. Brent crude jumped 2.38% to $92.64 per barrel the following day, a swift reminder that the Persian Gulf’s shipping lanes remain anything but safe. The Saudi-operated very large crude carrier Sidr, owned by Bahri, was struck by a projectile northeast of Khasab, Oman. Separately, the South Korean-operated Senegal Prosperity, managed by Sinokor Group, took fire from three projectiles east of Oman. Both vessels are VLCCs, the largest class of oil tanker, each capable of carrying roughly two million barrels of crude. A fragile recovery shattered The attacks are especially damaging because they came just as shipping through the strait had started to show signs of life. Transit volumes had recently climbed to an average of around 14 vessels per day, a meaningful uptick from the depths of disruption that followed hostilities beginning on February 28, 2026. That recovery now looks dead on arrival. Current traffic has plummeted back to roughly five ships per day transiting the strait. For context, pre-conflict l...