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Iran loaded no new crude oil onto tankers in September, according to tanker-tracking data, as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration
was cutting off a key source of revenue for Tehran. Bessent said in a post that Iran loaded “ZERO crude oil” onto tankers in September and linked the development to the administration’s “Operation Economic Outcast.” Iran International’s report, citing Kpler and TankerTrackers data, said Iran’s crude loadings had effectively stopped.
Iran’s Oil Shipments Grind To A Halt
Kpler data showed that Iran had not loaded new oil at its terminals since mid-August, while no Iranian oil cargo had crossed the US blockade line since mid-July.
Iran had accumulated around 67 million barrels aboard tankers anchored in its southern waters by mid-August. As access to empty tankers became increasingly limited, new loadings stopped.
Around 15 million barrels of Iranian oil remained on the water in Asian waters as of last week. Most of those cargoes had already been sold, according to Kpler analyst Homayoun Falakshahi.
Iran’s oil production has consequently been cut to around 1.8 million barrels per day, roughly the level required for domestic consumption and about half its pre-war output, according to Falakshahi.
Regional Crude Exports Recover
While Iranian shipments have halted, crude exports from Arab countries in the region have recovered.
Kpler data showed regional crude exports averaged around 16.5 million barrels per day in September. The seven-day average reached about 19.5 million barrels per day in the final week of September, above the pre-war level of roughly 17 million barrels per day.
Before the war, Iran and Arab countries in the region, including Oman, shipped nearly 17 million barrels per day of crude and 6.3 million barrels per day of oil products through the Strait of Hormuz, Gulf of Oman, and Red Sea.
In the final week of September, combined crude and oil-product exports from the region exceeded 22.4 million barrels per day, just 900,000 barrels per day below the pre-war level. Oil-product exports, however, were around 3 million barrels per day, less than half their pre-war level.
The UAE also increased production to more than 3.8 million barrels per day in August, around 700,000 barrels per day above its pre-war level.
