Houthi Blockade Threat Starts Reshaping Saudi Tanker Routes

Vessels Alter Course Amid Blockade Threat

According to a report by The Maritime Executive, early signs suggest the Houthi-declared blockade on shipping bound for Saudi ports is starting to affect vessel routing, even though no actual attacks on ships have been reported in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, or nearby waters. Three tankers are believed to have changed their intended destinations, though none were reportedly threatened directly. gCaptain also covered the emerging threat of a renewed Houthi naval blockade.

Tankers Reverse Course After Loading at Yanbu

The Singapore-flagged VLCC Xin Long Yang (IMO 9761463) and the Liberia-flagged tanker Rodos (IMO 1024948) had both loaded crude at Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu terminal and were heading south down the Red Sea before reversing direction. The Xin Long Yang still lists China as its AIS destination, with an August 10 arrival, while the Rodos is now showing Port Suez as its destination. Reaching the Suez Canal as a VLCC typically requires offloading roughly half the cargo at Ain Sukhna, transiting the canal lightly laden, and reloading the remainder via the Sumed Pipeline at Sidi Kerir.

The Hong Kong-flagged VLCC New Prime (IMO 9799123), which had been sailing empty toward Yanbu, is also reported to have changed course, according to Vanguard. Although its AIS still shows the Suez Canal as its destination, the vessel reportedly made a U-turn off Salalah and now appears to be heading east.

Car Carrier Also Turns Away

Lloyd’s List Intelligence reportedly identified a Chinese vehicle carrier, the Liu Jiang Kou (19,000 dwt), operated by COSCO Shipping, making a U-turn in the Gulf of Aden rather than continuing toward the Red Sea. The change is believed to be a response to a threat the Houthis issued on July 20.

Warnings Sent Directly to Shipping Companies

The course changes follow generic warning emails sent to multiple shipping companies by the Houthi Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center (HOCC), which has previously acted as a communications channel with merchant vessels transiting Yemeni waters. Notably, the warning has not appeared on the HOCC’s public website, unlike in past instances.

Despite these individual course changes, overall traffic through the IMO-designated Maritime Transit Security Corridor appeared slightly heavier on July 21 compared to five days earlier, based on a non-statistical review of shipping activity.

Wider Political Context

The blockade is reportedly linked in part to pressure facing Iran’s IRGC amid tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, but is primarily tied to a dispute over flights to and from Yemen following the blocking of a return flight carrying mourners from the funeral of the late Supreme Leader. That dispute is intertwined with stalled negotiations between the Houthis, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen’s internationally recognized government over a final settlement to the civil war that began in 2014, with the Houthis reportedly seeking a $13 billion payment from Saudi Arabia.