The first of the five tankers owned by George Prokopiou appears to have already exited the Strait of Hormuz after loading in the Persian Gulf, while two more vessels from the same company, Dynacom Tankers Management, are following the same route. The vessel in question is the tanker Shenlong.
According to ship-tracking data collected by -, the ship is carrying about one million barrels of Saudi crude oil. The data shows that the tanker switched off its tracking system (AIS) on March 4 while sailing in the Persian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz. Its signal reappeared Monday morning near the coast of India, indicating it had completed its transit through the strategic passage.
This movement is being closely monitored by the shipping and energy markets, as it is one of the first cases of a large tanker exiting the Persian Gulf after the dramatic slowdown in navigation in the region. Maritime activity through the strait has declined significantly in recent days due to tensions in the Middle East, with many shipowners avoiding sending vessels into the area.
According to data from Lloyd’s List Intelligence, overall ship traffic has dropped dramatically. In the first five days of February, more than 560 vessels passed through the passage, while during the same period in March only 46 did — a decline of about 91%.
The safe passage of large tankers is considered critical for normalizing energy flows from the Persian Gulf to international markets. Despite the movement of the Shenlong, the overall security situation does not appear to have improved significantly, and most shipping companies remain cautious about transiting the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important energy maritime corridors in the world.
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