The Strait Of Hormuz Is Open, But Ships Still Aren’t Passing Through. Here’s Why

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints, remains severely disrupted, with many vessels still avoiding the route amid lingering security concerns. The continued hesitation by shipping companies and insurers has raised questions about what it will take to restore normal traffic through the narrow waterway that carries a large share of global oil and gas supplies.

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Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains at less than 10% of normal levels, as Iran tightens control over the waterway by directing vessels through routes inside its territorial waters. The move has also raised the prospect of ships being asked to pay transit tolls, potentially in cryptocurrency, even as a fragile

ceasefire continues to hold.

According toship-tracking data from Kpler, Lloyd’s List Intelligence and Signal Ocean, just seven ships passed through the strait in the past 24 hours against a normal daily flow of around 140. These included one oil products tanker and six dry bulk carriers.

Hormuz Transit Still Seen As Risky

Hapag-Lloyd, the fifth-largest shipping company in the world, told CNN that it has six container ships trapped in the strait, but it’s keeping them put for now.

“Our top priority is the safety of our employees on land and on sea. Based on our current risk assessment we are refraining from transiting the strait,” spokesman Nils Haupt said.

News of a two-week ceasefire initially sent oil prices sharply lower and stocks soaring, underscoring the Strait of Hormuz’s importance to global trade. But the optimism quickly faded: despite assurances from US President Donald Trump that the strait is open, only a handful of ships have passed through in recent days, and oil prices, after steep declines, are again nearing $100 a barrel.

Indeed, Lale Akoner, a global market analyst at financial services company eToro, told CNN it could take six months to get ship traffic back to where it was before the war began. Before the conflict, over 100 cargo vessels passed daily through the 21-mile-wide Strait of Hormuz, according to Lloyd’s List. This means the war’s economic impact, especially higher energy costs, is likely to outlast the fighting.

Shippers remain wary of relying on a fragile ceasefire, particularly without clear guidance on which vessels can transit and when. Since the ceasefire was announced, only two oil or gas tankers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz, according to data analytics firm Kpler.

“Vessel operators believe it’s not worth taking the risk,” said Joe McMonigle, president of think tank Global Center for Energy Analysis and who lives in Saudi Arabia. “People are going to be extremely cautious about going back to normal.”

What Will Bring Ships Back To The Strait?

Behind the scenes, shipping companies are trying to work out how to safely move their vessels out of the Persian Gulf. Shipping executives say they currently have “no information” on how ships should transit the Strait of Hormuz during the ceasefire and are not in contact with Iranian authorities, according to Sanne Manders, president of Flexport, a global shipping logistics company.

Experts say Iran still effectively controls the strait, but its authorities have yet to outline a clear plan for safe passage. Martín Izaguirre Salgado, a seafarer aboard his company’s oil tanker in the Persian Gulf since late February, said that as of Thursday the crew remained unable to leave, CNN reported.

Shippers are seeking clarity before moving vessels. They want “explicit approval from the people that may do you harm,” said Ron Widdows, the former head of the World Shipping Council. “How that process works, who exactly is the body that’s got the authority to say, ‘Yeah, you can or not.,’”

Uncertainty deepened further after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed on Thursday that shipping through the Strait of Hormuz slowed sharply and later stopped following what it described as an Israeli ceasefire violation in Lebanon.

Proposed Toll Demands

According to the reports, Iran intends to charge ships a transit toll of as much as $2 million per vessel. The UN’s International Maritime Organization said no international agreement permits tolls on transit through international straits.

“Any such toll will set a dangerous precedent,” an IMO spokesperson said. Hundreds of tankers and other vessels have been stranded in the Persian Gulf since the war began on February 28, cutting global oil supply by about 20%.