Qatar Sends First LNG Tanker Through Hormuz in Nearly Three Weeks

The Al Areesh slipped through the Strait of Hormuz on the night of July 29. It carried a full cargo of liquefied natural gas loaded at Ras Laffan in early July, and it had been sitting in the Persian Gulf ever since, waiting.

The wait was 18 days. Qatar's other LNG tankers were in the same position. The last QatarEnergy tanker to clear the strait was the Al Rekayyat, which was struck by a projectile on July 7 as it made the crossing.

This time, the passage had a different structure. Pakistan negotiated safe transit terms with Iran. Tehran agreed and confirmed through its state news agency that an unnamed Qatari tanker was using an Iran-approved route through the waterway. The Al Areesh moved through with its AIS transponder on, tracked by maritime data services in real time.

The tanker is heading to Port Qasim, on Pakistan's southern coast. It is expected to arrive around July 31.