Japanese shipping company plans to withdraw vessels from Strait of Hormuz

Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) plans to withdraw its vessels currently operating in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible, Jotaro Tamura, the company’s chief executive, said.

However, according to him, it must first confirm safe passage conditions and await guidance from the Japanese government, Caliber.Az reports, citing Japanese media.

Despite a previously announced two-week ceasefire, the situation in the region remains uncertain, and there are still no signs that restrictions on passage through the strategically important waterway are being lifted.

“It's not ‌yet clear how this ceasefire will be implemented in the relevant waters,” said Tamura, adding that “it must be confirmed that the safety risks are sufficiently low.”

Earlier this month, three of the company’s vessels — an LNG tanker and two LPG carriers — passed through the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since the start of the conflict.

Several other MOL vessels remain in the Persian Gulf region.

The company said it has already secured sufficient fuel reserves to operate through the end of May.

In the long term, a prolonged conflict could affect global supply chains, but it could also increase shipping companies’ earnings due to higher logistics costs and route realignments.

MOL expects pretax profit of around 200 billion yen (approximately $1.26 billion) for the current fiscal year, although the forecast may be revised in the near future.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov