Yemen Monitor/ Marib/ Exclusive:
Oil tankers and container ships avoiding the Red Sea route are expected to burn an additional 500,000 barrels of fuel per a day this year due to the longer alternative route around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, according to estimates from the giant commodity trading firm Trafigura.
Since the end of 2023, many ship owners and charterers have opted for the longer route via Africa to avoid passing through the Red Sea, where the Houthi group, allied with Iran, has targeted Western or Israeli-flagged or owned vessels.
Trafigura, one of the world’s largest independent oil trading companies, estimated that oil tankers alone would consume an additional 200,000 barrels per day of fuel this year as they reroute around the Cape of Good Hope. According to the commodity trading firm, this increased fuel consumption is equivalent to a 4.5% increase in annual emissions from oil tankers alone.
Trafigura noted that when container ships and other vessels avoiding the Red Sea are added to the estimates, the shipping industry is expected to increase its consumption of fuel by about 500,000 barrels per day this year due to disruptions to traffic in the Middle East region alone.
Tensions in the region have escalated since the end of last year when the Israeli occupation launched a brutal aggression against Gaza Strip. In response, the Houthis say they have intensified their attacks on commercial ships passing through Bab el-Mandeb Strait on their way to and from the Red Sea, forcing many ship owners and operators to suspend the Suez Canal/Red Sea route for transporting goods from Europe to Asia and vice versa.
