The Shenlong switched off its tracking systems to navigate the perilous Hormuz passage, arriving at Mumbai port on Wednesday
In a voyage that reads like a maritime thriller, a Liberia-flagged Suezmax tanker captained by an Indian sailor has become the first vessel to successfully deliver crude oil to India after transiting the Strait of Hormuz since the Iran-US war erupted.
The Shenlong loaded 1,35,335 metric tonnes of Saudi crude at Ras Tanura on March 1 and sailed three days later. As it approached the treacherous strait where Iran has been targeting non-Chinese shipping the vessel went deliberately “dark,” switching off its AIS transponders to avoid detection. It reappeared on tracking databases on March 9, before berthing at Mumbai’s Jawahar Dweep at 6.06 pm Wednesday. The cargo is now being discharged to refineries in Mahul.
The safe arrival offers a sliver of relief to India, which sources over half its crude through the strait but the anxiety is far from over. Twenty-eight Indian-flagged vessels remain trapped in or near the waterway, though seven have since navigated to the relative safety of the Arabian Sea by reportedly assuming Chinese vessel identities amid widespread signal spoofing and jamming.
One tanker made it through. Dozens are still waiting.
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