As oil pressures continue to mount, India is prioritising the safe movement and release of its vessels currently stuck around the Strait of Hormuz amid tensions in West Asia that are disrupting global shipping routes, Reuters reported citing a Central government official on Thursday.
The official further said authorities are closely coordinating with the Ministry of External Affairs before allowing Indian tankers to resume cargo loading operations in the area.
Moreover, India will send vessels for loading through the crucial Strait only when the security situation improves and conditions are considered safe for commercial movement.
Also Read | India prepares to send oil tankers through Hormuz for new supply
"Priority is to secure release of Indian vessels currently stranded in Hormuz Strait. Will send vessels to Hormuz Strait for loading when situation is conducive. In talks with foreign ministry to send tankers for loading in Strait of Hormuz," said an official, the news agency reported.
The statement comes a day after Bloomberg News reported that New Delhi is preparing to gradually restart energy shipments through the one of the world’s most critical oil transit chokepoints.
People familiar with the matter told the news outlet that plans to send vessels for loading crude cargoes from West Asian suppliers have already been drawn up, with final clearances from the government awaited.
Also Read | Iran's newly-created strait authority discloses 'controlled maritime zone' at Hormuz
According to the report, state-run Shipping Corporation of India is understood to be readying operations in the Persian Gulf once approvals are received from the Indian Navy and commercial orders come in from refiners.
The Strait of Hormuz, which carries nearly a fifth of global oil supplies, has witnessed severe disruptions since the Iran conflict escalated earlier this year, sending crude prices sharply higher and rattling importing nations including India, the world’s third-largest buyer of oil.
Iran plans new shipping mechanism in Hormuz
Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, said Tehran had finalised a designated route management mechanism for traffic moving through the strategic waterway and details would be announced soon, Reuters had earlier reported.
According to the Iranian official, only commercial ships and countries maintaining cooperation with Iran would be allowed to benefit from the proposed arrangement.
He also said Tehran would levy “necessary fees” for specialised services offered under the mechanism, while operators linked to what he described as the “Freedom Project” would not be permitted access.
