The oil tanker Karachi is currently en route to Pakistan with a cargo of Das crude loaded at Abu Dhabi’s Das Island. The vessel safely transited the Strait of Hormuz on 15 March 2026 with AIS active, a first for a non‑Iranian tanker since the conflict started amid elevated regional tension and frequent disruptions to commercial shipping.
The tanker originally departed Das Island in February carrying a full cargo of Das Blend for Pakistan. It is the first vessel to complete a normal, undisrupted transit of the strait since the onset of the conflict, at a time when several tankers have recently faced attacks, detentions, or navigational risks.
Wood Mackenzie vessel‑tracking data shows more than 126 million bbls of crude currently loaded and waiting in the Middle Eastern Gulf. Loadings have slowed since Thursday as available tankers are liimied in the region with most vessels already full and acting as floating storage.
