Refrigerated containers for the Maersk transport line are stacked on April 22, 2025 at the container terminal at the Bremerhaven port in Bremerhaven, Germany.
Focke Strangmann | Getty Images News | Getty Images
The world’s largest direct membership group of shipowners, leasers, ship brokers and brokers warned that although it is unclear how Iran will respond to Saturday’s The United States offensive At Iran’s nuclear facilities, the threat of commercial transport in waters around the Arabian Peninsula has risen.
“The threat to transport in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden is also rising,” said Jakob Larsen, head of security at BIMCO, representing global ship owners. “The Houthis are now threatening merchant ships with affiliation with Israel or the United States, but attacks against merchant ships with other affiliation cannot be ruled out.”
Larson said U.S. warships and merchant ships are expected to belong to Israel, otherwise the United States will be the first choice target for Iranians.
Integrated logistics provider Maersk announced Friday that it will temporarily suspend port phone calls at the port to give Israel’s largest container port Haifa. The $4.2 billion cargo facility in Haifa owned by the Adani Group has been targeting Iranian missiles, but has suffered no losses. Last week, Adani CFO Jugeshinder “Robbie” Singh debunked the misinformation, saying the port was on fire during a strike on Iranian social media.
BIMCO’s Larsen warned that Iran could attempt to destroy commercial transport more widely in the Hormuz Strait through attacks on merchant ships. He said.
“The laying of sea mines will pose another dangerous development, but Iran’s intentions are questionable due to the risk of Iran’s frozen commercial vessels and the risk of environmental disasters that cause ship damage,” Larson said.
Connecting the Persian Gulf to the Hormuz Strait, the Arabian Sea, is considered one of them The most important oil memo in the world. Oil cannot cross the strait of hormuz, and it can even be temporarily Ratchets rise global energy pricesincrease shipping costs and create significant supply delays. In 2023, oil flows through the waterway average According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, there are 20.9 million barrels per day, accounting for about 20% of global oil liquid consumption.
“Given the threat from Iran to military bases in the region, the availability of warships protecting commercial transport may be limited, especially for commercial ships not associated with the United States or Israel,” Larson said.
The Hormuz Strait handles less than 4% of global container trade, but the ports of Jebel Ali and Khor Fakkan are key intermediaries for the region’s global transportation network.
Most of the cargo at these ports is destined to be used in Dubai, which has become a freight hub for deliverymen services in Persian Gulf, South Asia and East Africa.
The conflict in the region also triggered ocean freight rates from Shanghai to Jebel Ali, the largest port in the Arabian Gulf.
Freight intelligence company Xeneta said the average point rate had increased by 55% before the conflict between Israel and Iran escalated. The current price is $2,761 per 40 feet equivalent unit (FEU), a standard unit that measures the capacity and quantity of cargo of a container ship.
On the tanker side, the spot rate of very large crude oil (VLCC) navigation between the Middle East and China has increased by 154% per week. The speed of the long-range tanker (LR2) Sino-Japanese trade routes rose by 148%, and the rate of very large gasoline carriers (VLGC) in East Japan and Japan rose by 33%.
Reasons for the increase in rates include increased costs related to safety measures, higher bunker fuel prices and fuel costs, as vessels use more fuel due to navigation in high-risk areas.
Marsh McLennan, the world’s largest marine insurance broker, pointed out that the Hull and machinery insurance rates for ships transitioning to the Strait of Hormuz have increased by more than 60%.
In view of the latest defense measures, BIMCO encourages shipowners to review their safety risk assessments and carefully consider mitigation measures.
“Merchant ships in the region should consider reducing exposure to Iranian threats, for example, away from the Iranian coast,” Larson said. “We also recommend that vessels maintain close contact with the navies in the region through British maritime trade operations, maintain strong vigilance and increase surveillance, report suspicious sightings and incidents to the UKMTO, and enhance the resilience of the vessel to absorb damage by ensuring the ability to control damage to damage control tissue.”
“BIMCO has never directly advised ship owners to stay away from conflict areas completely. Taking into account all relevant factors of safety risk assessment, such decisions should be made by ship owners, including threats, vulnerability of the ship, and risk acceptance levels of seafarers, shipowners and cargo owners.”
