Oil Tanker Reaches India Amid War Tensions

Despite escalating war tensions in West Asia, oil tankers carrying crude oil have successfully reached India. A massive tanker named ‘Shenlong’, sailing under the Liberian flag, loaded crude oil at the Ras Tanura port in Saudi Arabia on the 1st of this month and departed shortly after the conflict began. As tensions intensified near the Strait of Hormuz, the ship’s captain Sushant Singh Sandhu and the crew adopted a strategic approach by switching off the Automatic Identification System and transponders to avoid tracking. This technique, known as “going dark,” is often used by shipping companies in extraordinary situations to evade potential threats. The tanker finally arrived at the Mumbai port on Wednesday carrying around one million barrels of crude oil.

Meanwhile, another Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) sailing under the Indian flag has departed from Iraq with nearly two million barrels of crude oil. The vessel has already entered Indian waters and is expected to reach the Paradip port in Odisha within the next two days. Together, these two ships will deliver nearly three million barrels of crude oil to India. The successful arrival of these shipments provides relief to the country as energy supplies continue despite the ongoing geopolitical tensions.