The Indian government is urgently mediating with Iran for over 20 oil tankers to obtain a "safe passage certificate" through the Hormuz Strait.

Media reports citing informed sources revealed that India, a major global energy demand country, is currently engaging in the latest round of urgent negotiations with Iran to ensure the safe passage of over 20 oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. The sources indicated that the negotiations are still ongoing and are being handled by the Foreign Ministry. The narrow waterway typically carries around one-third of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments, and has essentially been closed since the outbreak of the latest round of war in the Persian Gulf. Due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by Iranian forces, including the Gulf's four major oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia, production cuts have been initiated. This reduction in oil production in the Middle East has deepened the chaos in the energy market. This round of production cuts is the most substantial global oil supply response since the outbreak of the war between the US/Israel and Iran, resulting in a reduction of about one-third of the total oil production from the Gulf countries. This has also led to a decrease in global supply by approximately 6%-10%. Furthermore, the latest geopolitical developments show that Oman, another core oil-producing country in the Middle East, has evacuated all ships from its key export terminals outside the Strait of Hormuz and two oil tankers have been attacked in Iraqi waters. As a precautionary measure, Oman has notified all ships to evacuate the main oil export terminal at the Port of Fujairah. Fujairah Port, located outside the Strait of Hormuz, is one of the few ports in the Middle East where crude oil can still be shipped to global markets. Data from the intelligence company Kpler shows that Oman exports about 1 million barrels of crude oil per day from Fujairah Port. These tankers associated with India are loaded with crude oil, liquefied petroleum gas, and LNG, and have been stranded since the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran at the end of last month. However, once they arrive, they are expected to help alleviate the extremely tight global oil and gas supply and the rising trend in Brent crude prices. India relies on the Middle East for nearly half of its crude oil, two-thirds of its LNG, and almost all of its liquefied petroleum gas imports. Earlier this week, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar posted on the X platform that he had spoken with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi about the latest developments in the conflict, and both sides agreed to stay in touch. However, he did not mention the large cargo ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. On Thursday, reports emerged that Iran had allowed ships flying the Indian flag to pass through the strait. However, when asked if an agreement had been reached, an Iranian official familiar with the situation denied issuing clearance. One source mentioned that among the ships, 10 were carrying liquefied petroleum gas purchased by large Indian refining companies such as Indian Oil Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, while five were transporting crude oil. According to Sumit Ritolia, Chief Analyst at Kpler, shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has significantly decreased, but some ships occasional...