Bangladesh Bringing Oil from Yanbu Port to Avoid Hormuz Complications

Staff Report: PNN

To avoid the instability and complications of the Strait of Hormuz, Bangladesh has decided to import crude oil using an alternative port in Saudi Arabia. As part of this, 100,000 metric tons of crude oil are being brought from the Yanbu Commercial Port, located on the Red Sea coast.

Sources related to the matter said that this oil will be transported directly via the Red Sea to the state-owned Eastern Refinery Limited in Chattogram. According to the plan, the oil tanker will depart from Yanbu Port on April 20.

Meanwhile, another 100,000 metric tons of crude oil on a ship named MT Nordic Pollux is currently stuck near the Hormuz Strait. Although the ship is at the Ras Tanura port in Saudi Arabia, it cannot reach Bangladesh due to pending approvals.

The Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) stated that diplomatic efforts are underway to resolve this complication. If permission is granted, the stranded ship will also arrive in Chattogram. It is expected that by the first week of May, a total of 200,000 metric tons of oil from the two ships could reach the country.

Sources at Eastern Refinery stated that this quantity of crude oil can be refined to produce a significant amount of fuel, including diesel, petrol, octane, furnace oil, and kerosene, which will play a crucial role in the country's energy supply.

Commodore Mahmudul Malek, Managing Director of BSC, said that considering the uncertainty of the Hormuz Strait, this time a strategy of using an alternative route has been adopted. Since Yanbu Port is outside the Hormuz Strait, the risk associated with oil transport is comparatively lower.

Experts believe that this initiative will help stabilize the country’s energy supply and mitigate some effects of the ongoing global energy crisis.