West Asian Supertanker Prices Hit an All Time High

According to a Financial Times report carried by OilPrice.com on Thursday, August 20, 2026 (29 Mordad 1405), prices for new and second hand very large crude carriers serving West Asian oil producers passed 130 million dollars in the second quarter of this year, an all time high. Data from shipbroker Braemar showed the annual charter rate for a supertanker has also hit its highest level on record.

David Holland, Braemar's head of sale and purchase, told the Financial Times that owning tankers outright has become strategically important for some West Asian exporters. The demand surge follows major shipping lines' growing reluctance to send vessels through the Strait of Hormuz amid repeated attacks on tankers, pushing oil producing states toward their own dedicated fleets. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) bought six supertankers and five very large gas carriers earlier this month for a combined 1.3 billion dollars.

Unlike the UAE, Iraq has no dedicated tanker fleet and depends on international traders and buyers to move its crude, so it has had to offer steep discounts to persuade buyers to make the risky Hormuz passage.