Patrol vessel KN. Pulau Marore-322, owned by Indonesia's Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) patrols to inspect the Iranian-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC), MT Arman 114, and the Cameroon-flagged MT S Tinos, as they were spotted conducting a ship-to-ship oil transfer without a permit, according to Indonesia's Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla), near Indonesia's North Natuna Sea, Indonesia, July 7, 2023 in this handout picture released July 11, 2023. Indonesia's Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) / Handout via REUTERS
Most Iranian-flagged tankers have begun transmitting properly over the Automatic Identification System (AIS) without spoofing for the first time in seven and a half years, according to TankerTrackers.com.
The sudden shift, which began Tuesday, marks a significant change in the operational transparency of Iran’s maritime fleet. The reasons behind the decision remain unknown.
Two independent AIS data providers have confirmed the change in transmission patterns, TankerTrackers said.
For more than seven years, Iranian vessels have employed AIS spoofing techniques to obscure their actual positions and movements. The practice has been widely used to evade sanctions and monitoring of Iranian oil exports. The abrupt return to standard AIS broadcasting represents a notable departure.
Iran has previously vowed to retaliate against Western assets in the Middle East region if their vessels were provoked in any manner, according to TankerTrackers.
The timing and motivation for the switch remain unclear, and it is uncertain whether the change represents a policy decision by Iranian authorities or something else.
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The cost of shipping oil in the largest tankers hit record highs this week following the biggest wave of attacks on shipping since the U.S.-Iran war began in late February.
Iraq is holding a tender to hire two or more oil supertankers to perform transits through the Strait of Hormuz, the latest evidence that producers in the region are trying to take greater control of their exports through the chokepoint.
Vessel transits via the Strait of Hormuz fell on Wednesday to seven from 12 the previous day, preliminary ship-tracking data showed on Thursday, with levels also below the 10-day average of 14.
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