Qatar – October 27, 2026 -- The benchmark VLCC rate from Saudi Arabia to China has passed $1.3 million per day, pushing freight above 25-30% of the cost of Gulf crude versus 1-3% in normal market conditions, according to Windward. The surge follows a tanker strike off Qatar on October 7.
Tanker struck 51 nautical miles off Qatar breaks the Hormuz-only attack pattern
An unnamed tanker was hit by multiple projectiles 51 nautical miles off Madinat ash Shamal, UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on October 7. It is the first attack outside the Strait of Hormuz since September 9, when a Greek-owned very large crude carrier was struck in Iraqi waters.
UKMTO has logged 16 attacks on ships in the Middle East Gulf in 10 days. Windward confirmed 12 of the vessels, 11 of them tankers. All were transiting dark through the U.S. military-assisted southern corridor.
National oil companies pay $50 million per transit and discount crude by $35 a barrel
National oil companies are paying tankers $50 million per transit to carry crude to ship-to-ship transfer areas off Fujairah and Oman, Windward has been told. Discounts to the official sale price (OSP) have reached $35 per barrel as sellers try to secure sales.
Windward describes maritime security as the most perilous in the region since the early days of the conflict. Logistics chains were already struggling to find tankers willing to make risky transits.
Risk reaches GCC ports as tankers turn back after IRGC hails
The latest strike extends risk to GCC ports and anchorages where tankers load oil and gas for coordinated southern-corridor transits. An attack reported on October 6 on the ON PEACE (IMO 9893204) injured 12 Indian seafarers.
Tankers are reportedly turning around mid-transit after being hailed by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. In early September, U.S. CENTCOM disabled or destroyed eight Iran-trading tankers, a move attributed to a tanker-for-tanker policy in response to strikes on ships using the southern corridor.