One of the Russian oil tankers that were transporting Urals crude has changed its route halfway through transportation, shifting its destination to India instead of China as the global energy crisis worsens due to the tensions between the United States and Iran. The ship-tracking data shows that the Aframax tanker, Aqua Titan, which left a port in the Baltic Sea at the end of January, is now likely to arrive at New Mangalore Port in March 21.
The ship was heading to the Chinese Rizhao port, however, in mid-March, it suddenly turned around in the South China Sea and started heading towards India. This shift is also linked to the latest geopolitical events such as upsets in the oil supply routes following the blocking of movement by the Strait of Hormuz, an important passage that processes a large portion of the world oil and LNG trade.
During the crisis, India has increased its purchase of Russian crude and refiners are supposed to have acquired almost 30 million barrels in a span of a week to counter dropping supplies in the traditional sources of the Middle East. The recent weeks have also seen a similar situation where according to an energy analytics firm, Vortexa Ltd., various tankers have diverted shipments between China and India, and this is a larger reflection of an overall shift in global oil trade patterns.
In a different example, the Suezmax tanker Zouzou N. that is transporting the Kazakh CPC Blend crude has also rerouted and is projected to reach Sikka Port by March 25. These advances highlight the fact that India is increasingly becoming dependent on the alternative sources of energy as the world continues to face unknown challenges.
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