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Two ships have become the first to transit the Strait of Hormuz since the United States and Iran agreed an overnight ceasefire, according to maritime monitor MarineTraffic.
The Greek-owned bulk carrier NJ Earth crossed the strait at 10:44 am CET, while the Liberia-flagged Daytona Beach transited earlier at 8:59 am CET, after departing the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas a bit over an hour earlier at 7:28 am CET.
The passages mark the first confirmed transits under what are likely the new terms of the truce affecting the world’s most critical energy chokepoint.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said ships would be permitted safe passage through the strait for a two-week period “via coordination with Iran’s armed forces and with due consideration of technical limitations”.
The deal came hours before a deadline set by US President Donald Trump, after he threatened “a whole civilisation will die tonight” unless Iran agreed to open the strait, before announcing a suspension of bombing in exchange for the ceasefire.
Over 800 ships are estimated to be currently stuck inside the Middle East Gulf according to Lloyd’s List, a reputable London-based shipping journal, and shipowners with vessels stranded there also told Lloyd’s that preparations were under way to start moving them as soon as Wednesday morning.
Key details remain uncertain, as Iran says it has agreed to two weeks of safe passage with “technical limitations,” while Trump announced a “complete, immediate and safe opening”.
It remains unclear whether the two sides have settled on transit payment terms or precisely when the truce takes effect.
Neil Roberts, head of marine and aviation at Lloyd’s Market Association, said that while a ceasefire was generally good news for shipping companies, they would continue to incur losses and that a full resumption of pre-war traffic is unlikely soon.
“Ships previously unable to leave will now try to do so as soon as the owners and master deem it is safe to do so,” he explained, highlighting that the region will continue to be treated as a heightened risk.
“From an insurance point of view, the ceasefire is of course welcome … but, in the meantime, it is highly unlikely that trade into the Gulf will simply resume,” Roberts continued.
The toll question
A regional official said Iran and Oman would both charge vessels for transit, with Iran intending to use the proceeds for reconstruction. Several unconfirmed reports suggest a fee of around $2m (€1.7m) per ship is being discussed.
Iran’s parliament has been debating legislation to codify the toll regime.
Since mid-March, the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its navy have been operating the strait as a de facto tollbooth, collecting fees, in some cases in Chinese yuan and cryptocurrency, in exchange for safe passage.
The Strait of Hormuz has never carried a toll in its history as an international waterway.
The strait’s two shipping lanes permit for around 20 million barrels of oil and petroleum products per day — roughly one-fifth of global oil consumption and more than a quarter of all seaborne oil trade, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
Around a fifth of global LNG trade also passes through Hormuz, with Qatar as the primary exporter.