After months of disruption, oil exports from Iran finally picked up after Tehran and Washington reached a peace deal. According to shipping data cited by Bloomberg a wave of 11 tankers carrying 20 million barrels of crude left the Gulf of Oman port. The vessels had previously been unable to sail into the Indian Ocean due to a US military blockade aimed at limiting Iran’s access to oil revenues. Most of the country’s oil exports are shipped to China.The rise in exports has come alongside Iran’s continued efforts to regulate maritime movement through the Strait of Hormuz. The Persian Gulf State Authority, which oversees transit operations, has published guidance requiring vessels to follow designated routes and setting out how tolls could be imposed on ships passing through the waterway.Chabahar has emerged as the most visible outlet for increased energy shipments since the memorandum of understanding signed on Wednesday. The port, located near Iran’s border with Pakistan and outside the Persian Gulf, has seen the clearest evidence of additional oil flows despite expectations that the agreement would ease the movement of oil and gas across the wider region.However, uncertainty remains over the longer-term outlook. Negotiations on a permanent peace agreement between the United States and Iran, scheduled to begin in Switzerland on Friday, have been delayed. The postponement came after overnight clashes involving Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon. It remains unclear whether the delay will have any effect on shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman.Traffic through the region appeared lighter on Friday morning. No non-Iranian tankers were observed heading out of the Persian Gulf, compared with Thursday when vessels carrying nearly 10 million barrels were either transiting or had already exited the Strait of Hormuz. The supertanker Tenzan, carrying a full cargo, was later spotted in the Gulf of Oman after apparently crossing the strait overnight.Additional cargo movements may become apparent in the days ahead. Ships have increasingly been travelling through Hormuz with their transponders switched off, often following routes close to Oman’s coastline.
