Baku, Azerbaijan, July 26
By Emil Ilgar – Trend:
The Strait of Hormuz is the world's most important chokepoint, The US Energy Information Administration said in its latest report.
According to the report, total flows through the Strait of Hormuz increased to a record high of 18.5 million b/d, compared to 17 mb/d in 2015.
Located between Oman and Iran, the Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
The EIA estimates that about 80% of the crude oil that moved through this chokepoint went to Asian markets, based on data from Lloyd’s List Intelligence tanker tracking service.
“China, Japan, India, South Korea, and Singapore are the largest destinations for oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz", said the report.
Qatar exported about 3.7 trillion cubic feet per year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) through the Strait of Hormuz in 2016, according to BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy 2017. This volume accounts for more than 30% of global LNG trade.
Kuwait imports LNG volumes that travel northward through the Strait of Hormuz. At its narrowest point, the Strait of Hormuz is 21 miles wide, but the width of the shipping lane in either direction is only two miles wide, separated by a two-mile buffer zone.
The Strait of Hormuz is deep enough and wide enough to handle the world's largest crude oil tankers, with about two-thirds of oil shipments carried by tankers in excess of 150,000 deadweight tons coming through this Strait.