Story perspectives

UAE Tankers Disable AIS, Move 6 M Barrels Past Iran

5/8/2026

Summary

Story summary

UAE tankers sailed through the Strait of Hormuz with Automatic Identification System (AIS) disabled, evading Iranian detection.
ADNOC moved 6 million barrels of Upper Zakum and Das crude on four AIS-off tankers in April, with the VLCC Hafeet and VLCC Aliakmon I ship-to-ship 2 million barrels after leaving the strait.
ADNOC announced it will continue ship-to-ship transfers from May, notifying Asian refiners of Das and Upper Zakum cargoes at Fujairah and Sohar.

History

Historical Context

After the UN imposed comprehensive sanctions on Iraq in August 1990 following its invasion of Kuwait, Baghdad engaged in illegal oil transactions to evade the embargo that lasted until May 2003, even as the 1995 Oil-for-Food programme allowed $2 billion of sales every six months. Today, the UAE’s state oil firm ADNOC employs a similar ship-to-ship scheme in the Strait of Hormuz, raising regional security concerns.

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Story summary

UAE tankers sailed through the Strait of Hormuz with Automatic Identification System (AIS) disabled, evading Iranian detection.
ADNOC moved 6 million barrels of Upper Zakum and Das crude on four AIS-off tankers in April, with the VLCC Hafeet and VLCC Aliakmon I ship-to-ship 2 million barrels after leaving the strait.
ADNOC announced it will continue ship-to-ship transfers from May, notifying Asian refiners of Das and Upper Zakum cargoes at Fujairah and Sohar.

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