Recently, due to the crisis in the Hormuz Strait, approximately 70 Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) are sailing from Asia and other regions towards the Gulf of Mexico in the United States to purchase crude oil. This number is more than double the amount of super tankers from the same period last year. President Trump stated last Saturday that a large number of empty oil tankers are heading towards the United States.
Analyst Matt Smith from the European energy and shipping data company Kpler told Nikkei News on April 16th, “Oil tankers are forming an uninterrupted fleet that seems to be heading towards the United States.” Vessel tracking data shows that about 70 VLCCs are sailing towards the U.S. Gulf Coast from Asia and other regions, exceeding the average of 27 super tankers during a normal period last year.
VLCCs were originally built to transport Middle Eastern oil to Asian markets such as Japan at a lower cost, with a carrying capacity ranging from 200,000 to 300,000 tons, equivalent to about half a day’s oil consumption in Japan. Out of approximately 1,000 VLCCs worldwide, nearly one-tenth are en route to the United States.
Normally, 90% of the oil transported through the Hormuz Strait flows to Asia. The current situation in the Iran region has led to a temporary disruption in the strait, causing a global shortage of crude oil, prompting Asian buyers to turn to the United States for oil purchases.
Smith commented, “The fleet of VLCCs heading to the United States is the largest we have seen, highlighting the squeeze on oil supply.” Kpler, based in Brussels, Belgium, tracks vessels and oil tankers in real-time, monitoring the global logistics of over 40 commodities (destinations, inventory, and forecasts), with crude oil being just one of them.
President Trump posted on his media platform, ‘Truth Social,” last Saturday (April 11), stating, “A large number of empty oil tankers, some of which are the largest in the world, are currently sailing towards the United States, carrying the world’s highest quality and ‘sweetest’ oil (and natural gas!). Our oil reserves exceed the total of the second and third largest oil-producing countries combined – and with higher quality. We look forward to your visit. Don’t miss out!”
The International Energy Agency (IEA) released its Oil Market Report on April 14, showing that U.S. oil production (which includes all liquid petroleum-related products such as crude oil, natural gas liquids, and other liquids) increased by 540,000 barrels per day (b/d) in March compared to the previous month, reaching 21.6 million b/d, fully recovering from the production losses caused by severe winter weather in January. Crude oil production increased by 260,000 b/d to 13.8 million b/d, with 190,000 b/d coming from light tight oil (LTO). In addition, natural gas liquids (NGLs) production increased by 270,000 b/d to 7.7 million b/d.
According to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released on April 15, in the week ending April 10, U.S. crude oil exports reached 5.225 million barrels per day, an increase of approximately 26% from the previous week’s average of 4.149 million barrels per day, marking a weekly average high for seven months.