Iran said that the Strait of Hormuz is open, but in practice only 1 non-Iranian oil tanker managed to cross in 24 hours — before the blockade, 100 ships passed per day.

Written by Douglas Avila

Published on 18/04/2026 at 10:03

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Despite the Iranian declaration of free passage, maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz remains nearly paralyzed — the tanker Argo Maris was the only non-Iranian vessel to cross in 24 hours

Iran announced on Friday (17) that the Strait of Hormuz was completely open for commercial ships.

But maritime traffic data tells a different story.

In the 24 hours following the declaration, only 1 non-Iranian tanker managed to cross the strait, according to CNN Brasil.

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Who was the tanker that passed

The Argo Maris, operated by a company from the United Arab Emirates and flying the flag of Curaçao, departed from the port of Bandar Abbas.

The ship briefly disappeared from public tracking panels and reappeared around 2:54 PM (Brasília time).

During the same period, three Iranian tankers — Deep Sea, Sonia I, and Diona — left Khark Island carrying about 5 million barrels of crude oil.

The three vessels are under American sanctions, marking the first shipments of this kind since the U.S. blockade.

What this means for the market

The “paper” reopening caused oil prices to drop more than 10% on Friday.

However, actual traffic shows that normalization is far from happening.

The Strait of Hormuz is only 33 km wide at its narrowest point and carries one fifth of the world’s oil production.

The reopening is conditioned on a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which is due by Tuesday (April 21).

Iran already threatens to reverse

On Saturday (18), the Iranian Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, warned that “with the continuation of the U.S. naval blockade, the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open“.

The statement was published by Euronews.

According to Veja, the Iranian Armed Forces threatened to expand blockades to other regions if Washington does not lift the naval siege.

Note: the reopening can be reversed at any moment if negotiations between the U.S. and Iran fail. The ceasefire expires on Tuesday and there is no guarantee of an extension.

Iran said that the Strait of Hormuz is open, but in practice only 1 non-Iranian oil tanker managed to cross in 24 hours — before the blockade, 100 ships passed per day.

Despite the Iranian declaration of free passage, maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz remains nearly paralyzed — the tanker Argo Maris was the only non-Iranian vessel to cross in 24 hours

Who was the tanker that passed

What this means for the market

Iran already threatens to reverse

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Iran said that the Strait of Hormuz is open, but in practice only 1 non-Iranian oil tanker managed to cross in 24 hours — before the blockade, 100 ships passed per day.

Despite the Iranian declaration of free passage, maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz remains nearly paralyzed — the tanker Argo Maris was the only non-Iranian vessel to cross in 24 hours

Who was the tanker that passed

What this means for the market

Iran already threatens to reverse

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