Houthi Blockade Threat Forces Tankers to Reroute as Red Sea Alternative Lanes Come Under Pressure
N.R. Finch
Houthi forces warned shipowners to stay away from Saudi ports, prompting multiple tankers to reverse course in the Red Sea — the first clear signal that both bypass corridors around the Strait of Hormuz are under strain simultaneously, accelerating the drawdown of global crude supply buffers.
What did the Houthis warn?
Houthi forces emailed shipowners, banning vessels from calling at Saudi ports.
Bloomberg vessel-tracking data shows several Chinese ships turned back after the warning. A tanker managed by Greece's Dynacom also reversed — the company has had three ships attacked recently, one of which now sits half-sunk in the middle of the Strait of Hormuz.
Some tankers continued toward the area. Several Asian buyers said they were still trying to load cargo in Saudi Arabia that day.
Why has the Red Sea route suddenly become so critical?
After the war began, Hormuz risk surged. Saudi Arabia rerouted large crude volumes by pipeline to Yanbu port on the Red Sea coast.
Energy data firm Kpler puts wartime Saudi Aramco exports via Yanbu at nearly 5 million barrels per day; pre-war, total Saudi exports ran about 7 million b/d. This means → one port now handles roughly 70 percent of the kingdom's exports.
In plain terms = the Red Sea route was a backup corridor; it has become the main artery. The Houthi threat amounts to squeezing the main road and the detour at the same time.
How does the IEA read the situation?
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said Tuesday that escalating hostilities around the Strait of Hormuz and regional energy infrastructure have deepened supply-security concerns.
He specifically flagged the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — the chokepoint at the southern entrance to the Red Sea — calling it an increasingly important alternative to Hormuz. Threats there, he said, compound the uncertainty.
This reflects a risk that had been underestimated: the two bypass corridors are not independent — pressure on one spills directly into the other.
What is happening inside the Strait of Hormuz?
"Dark" transits — ships crossing with satellite transponders off — continue to be targeted. Another vessel was abandoned in the strait Tuesday, the second day in a row such an incident occurred.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said recent attacks in Omani waters have caused a sharp drop in transit density.
A person familiar with Gulf shipping said "shuttle" transits continue but at a significantly reduced scale compared with pre-attack levels.
Can the global crude supply buffer hold?
Oil prices have risen roughly one quarter since July. Brent fell to about $70 per barrel after a preliminary ceasefire in June and has since rebounded to about $90.
The IEA coordinated the largest government emergency stockpile release in history in March, planning to release 400 million barrels; about 290 million have been drawn so far. Member states still hold over 1 billion barrels in government-controlled reserves.
Risks beyond the Middle East are also rising: Kazakh crude flows via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) to Russia's Black Sea port of Novorossiysk were halted Tuesday after shipowners refused to enter the port due to frequent attacks.
What to watch next?
Satellite imagery shows oil-berth activity in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, and the UAE has fallen to a fraction of levels seen two months before the war.
This means → whether the two bypass corridors can stay open simultaneously is the critical test of whether global crude supply buffers can hold.
Put simply = if both the Red Sea and Hormuz routes seize up at once, the pace of stockpile releases may not keep up with the widening supply gap.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.