Bombed Oil Vessel Near Prussian Gulf Back in Business

An oil tanker hurt in a bombing that was blamed on Iran is back in the trade. The ship’s first destination is Iran.

The Andrea Victory is voyaging in the northern Persian Gulf and signaling Iran’s Bandar Imam Khomeini as a destination, in accordance with shipment tracking information. The info presents the vessel, which was attacked off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in May, is full and transporting gas to Iran.

Tanker bombings this year infected tensions in the Gulf because the U.S. and Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for attacking the ships and putting oil flows in danger. Iran refuses involvement in the bombing. European Nations and Iran are in a deadlock over the Islamic republic’s adherence to the 2015 nuclear treaty and the seizure by UK forces of freight of Iranian crude oil.

The Norwegian Andrea Victory was one of four vessels harmed by explosions off the UAE port of Fujairah two months ago. Two different tankers were attacked near Iranian territorial waters in June. Fujairah, the Gulf’s major oil-trading center, resides right outside the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic chokepoint at the entrance to the Gulf.

The Andrea Victory, after fixture in Dubai’s Port Rashid, appears to have loaded gas in a ship-to-ship delivery around Fujairah earlier this month, based on tanker tracking. It was unclear what sort of fuel the vessel is shipping.

The vessel’s operations have returned to “business as usual,” mentioned Dustin Eno, a crisis response supervisor at Navigate PR, which serves on behalf of the ship’s supervisor Thome Group. Eno, who was reached by phone on July 1, denied commenting on where the vessel was headed. Representatives for the ship couldn’t instantly be reached Sunday.

The U.S. penalties prohibit trade in Iranian oil and refined products. Iran has previously imported refined fuels to fulfill domestic demand, even as it expands its refining capability.