Fourteenth Korean oil tanker successfully transits through Red Sea

A Korean oil tanker has successfully transited the Red Sea and is currently en route home, marking the 14th crude oil ship to use the route, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said Friday.

The tanker loaded crude oil at Saudi Arabia's Yanbu Port before passing through the Red Sea and heading toward Korea, the ministry said. Details of the vessel's movements were not disclosed for safety reasons.

The vessel is the 14th Korean oil tanker to use the route linking the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea via the Red Sea since Korea began diverting shipments away from the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively blocked by Iran amid its conflict with the United States and Israel since late February.

Korean oil tankers that have passed through the Red Sea are arriving at domestic ports one after another to unload their crude oil, the ministry said.

The government considers using the Red Sea route to be the most realistic option for the time being, as the Strait of Hormuz has yet to stabilize, it said.

Yonhap