Stay on top of port closures, security incidents, congestion events and freight rate movements impacting global shipping. Updated continuously from verified industry sources.
The U.S. has imposed an active maritime blockade on Iran since April 13, 2026, disabling six commercial vessels and redirecting 122 others attempting to reach Iranian ports, including the latest interdiction of the tanker M/T Lexie heading to Kharg Island. The Strait of Hormuz and all Iranian port approaches remain subject to U.S. military enforcement, posing severe disruption risks to vessel schedules, oil export operations, and regional shipping routes in the Persian Gulf.
France intercepted and detained the sanctioned Russian tanker Tagor in the Atlantic Ocean, redirecting it to the French mainland as part of a European strategy to disrupt Russia's "shadow fleet" oil shipments. This incident signals increased interception risk and potential rerouting or delays for vessels linked to Russian oil trade in European Atlantic waters.
The Strait of Hormuz remains closed due to an ongoing conflict involving Iran, causing approximately 55 tankers to wait in holding positions near the Indian Ocean and East Africa, with major disruptions to Persian Gulf oil export flows. Tanker owners are strategically repositioning vessels within 3–5 sailing days of the Gulf in anticipation of a potential reopening, while the timeline and conditions for resumption of normal transit remain highly uncertain.
The U.S. military is quietly coordinating with commercial shippers to navigate the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing Iranian threats, including mines, drones, and fast attack boats, resulting in severely limited traffic through the strait (only 2–4 transits observed per day). Vessels are reportedly turning off AIS transponders and hugging the Omani coast to avoid Iranian threats, indicating significant operational disruptions and rerouting risk for the critical global shipping corridor.
The Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, with Iran selectively allowing passage and potential mines in the waterway, severely disrupting the transit of approximately one-fifth of global oil and LNG supplies. The EU is considering expanding its Aspides naval mission to lead a mine-clearing effort in the Strait, but a full reopening remains contingent on conflict resolution and stabilization of the situation.
Delfin Midstream has reached a Final Investment Decision for the first U.S. offshore floating LNG export facility (FLNG 1), located ~40 miles off the Louisiana coast, with a capacity of 4.4 mtpa and expected first production in 2030. This project will introduce a new maritime LNG export hub in the Gulf of Mexico, generating significant vessel traffic (LNG carriers, support vessels) in the area from construction through operations.
The Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed due to an ongoing US-Iran conflict now in its third month, with hundreds of vessels and approximately 20,000 seafarers trapped in the Gulf unable to leave without safety guarantees. Daily transit traffic — normally averaging 125 vessels — has been severely disrupted, with ship operators, insurers, and flag registries all under mounting operational and safety pressure.
The Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, with Iran selectively allowing passage and potentially mining the waterway, severely disrupting approximately one-fifth of global oil and LNG shipments. The EU is proposing to expand its Aspides naval mission to lead mine-clearing operations in the strait as part of a Franco-British coalition, but no timeline for restoration of free navigation has been established.
Escalating US-Iran hostilities have kept the Strait of Hormuz largely closed for over three months, severely disrupting global oil and LNG shipments that previously transited the route. Iranian attacks on vessels, mine-laying attempts, and strikes near Qeshm Island, alongside US defensive strikes, continue to threaten maritime traffic across the Gulf region, with no imminent resolution in sight.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz (SoH) due to ongoing conflict is causing severe structural disruptions to offshore maritime operations across the Middle East Gulf, including contract terminations for OSVs in Qatar and the UAE (up to 15 vessels), stranded newbuilds in the Gulf of Oman, and stalled EPC/construction projects due to inability to transit equipment from Asia. Insurance costs have surged up to 10x, and vessel maintenance costs are significantly elevated due to supply scarcity within the Gulf region.