Two very large crude carriers moored at Ras Tanura on Thursday and began loading at single point moorings, the first tankers to use Saudi Arabia's largest Persian Gulf terminal since early March, according to ship tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Two more VLCCs are at the Ras Tanura sea island terminal about 20 miles to the south, with one already moored and the other being guided into berth by tugs.
Riyadh shut its Gulf outlets after fighting with Iran flared in March and diverted crude through a 746 mile pipeline to the Red Sea coast. Yanbu has carried much of that load since, and on Friday all seven crude berths across its two terminals were occupied at once, the first time that has happened since the war began. June shipments from Yanbu are averaging about 4.1 million barrels a day, up nearly 500,000 barrels from May but still well short of the kingdom's roughly 7 million barrels a day before the conflict.
Crude exports from the wider Gulf have climbed back to at least three quarters of pre war volumes after the interim peace deal between Washington and Tehran. The UAE has rebounded to nearly 85 percent of its pre war level, drawing on pipelines, storage and alternate routes, according to the International Energy Agency. Qatar this week brought an empty LNG tanker back through Hormuz for the first time since the war began, and QatarEnergy has told Reuters it can restore full output at the Ras Laffan plant within a month.
Hormuz traffic continues in both directions but remains risky. A cargo ship was attacked on Thursday, renewing concerns about safe passage, and Tehran has insisted that it, along with Oman, will control traffic through the strait as part of any lasting deal. For owners, charterers and refiners, the uncertainty is pushing more barrels toward Yanbu and the Red Sea even as Ras Tanura comes back online, suggesting the Saudi export map may look different long after the shooting stops.