Blue Economy
HORMUZ CRISIS: TRUMP ORDERS US NAVY TO ESCORT OIL TANKERS AS 3,200 VESSELS TRAPPED IN GULF
HORMUZ CRISIS: TRUMP ORDERS US NAVY TO ESCORT OIL TANKERS AS 3,200 VESSELS TRAPPED IN GULF
Iranian threats to burn passing ships spark global shipping paralysis; freight rates and insurance costs soar
By Okeoghene Onoriobe | Waterways News Correspondent | Lagos
United States President Donald Trump has ordered the US Navy to begin escorting oil tankers through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, as a military conflict between the US-Israel coalition and Iran plunges global shipping into crisis and threatens energy flows to markets worldwide — including Nigeria and the wider African continent.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, Trump declared: “If necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible,” adding that the US would “ensure the FREE FLOW of ENERGY to the WORLD.” He also directed the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to provide risk insurance and guarantees for all maritime trade in the region, a measure covering all shipping companies, not just energy vessels.
3,200 Vessels Stranded as Iran Closes the Strait
The crisis escalated dramatically after Iranian commanders declared the Strait of Hormuz closed and issued stark warnings that the Revolutionary Guards and the regular navy would “set those ships ablaze” if vessels attempted to transit. As of the latest count, some 3,200 ships remain trapped inside the Persian Gulf, representing roughly four per cent of global shipping tonnage. The figure includes 112 crude tankers, 114 containerships, and approximately 500 vessels waiting off the coasts of the UAE and Oman.
“If necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible” POTUS Donal Trump
The strait, which sits between Iran and Oman, is the only maritime outlet from the Gulf to the open oceans and is the artery through which the oil output of Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates reaches world markets. Market analysts at Kpler described the situation not as a formal blockade but as “risk-driven paralysis,” noting that the strait normally handles 80 to 100 ship transits per day and carries roughly a fifth of global oil consumption. Bypass pipelines, they warned, lack the capacity to offset a sustained outage.
Freight Rates and Insurance Costs Surge
The market reaction has been severe. Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) freight rates shot to extraordinary levels on Monday, with the benchmark TD3C route from the Middle East to China quoted at $423,700 per day — an increase of over $205,000 from the previous day. Brokers cautioned, however, that confirmed fixtures at such levels were scarce.
War risk insurance has also become a critical concern. More than half of the world’s largest Protection and Indemnity (P&I) clubs have announced they will cease war risk cover for ships entering the Persian Gulf from 5 March, with automatic termination of protection for vessels transiting specified adjacent waters. The move is expected to sharply raise voyage costs and push shipowners to divert around the Cape of Good Hope, adding considerable time and expense to voyages.
Ships Damaged; Ports and Energy Infrastructure Struck
Iranian attacks have already inflicted real damage on the maritime and energy sectors. Clarksons Research reported at least six vessels damaged, including the Stena Imperative, Sea La Donna, Hercules Star, Ocean Electra, Skylight and MKD Vyom, alongside multiple strikes on ports and energy facilities. A strike on a Bahrain port on Monday killed one shipyard worker, injured two others and damaged a US-flagged tanker. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the “hardest hits” on Iran are “yet to come,” with no indication of how long the military campaign will last.
LNG, LPG, Containers and Dry Bulk: A Sector-by-Sector Impact
Beyond crude oil, the crisis is destabilising multiple shipping segments. The Ras Laffan LNG terminal has gone offline, sending regional gas prices sharply higher and pushing short-term LNG carrier rates up by more than 20 per cent. LPG flows — about 30 per cent of which pass through Hormuz — face similar disruptions to both supply and freight.
Container shipping faces limited direct exposure through Hormuz, with only about two per cent of box trade transiting the strait. Nonetheless, the indirect impact is material: major lines including MSC have suspended all bookings to the Middle East until further notice. Rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope is expected to intensify port congestion in both Europe and Asia. Dry bulk shipping faces the least direct exposure, though secondary delays and congestion are anticipated.
What This Means for Nigeria and Africa
For Nigeria and other African oil importers, the Hormuz crisis carries significant implications. Oil and gas prices have already risen sharply in response to the conflict, and any prolonged disruption to Gulf supply would further tighten global energy markets and raise import costs. Nigerian refineries and power sector operators that depend on imported petroleum products could face higher procurement costs, while the prospect of global tanker diversion to the Cape route could affect vessel availability and freight rates on West African trade lanes.
Waterways News will continue to monitor developments in the Strait of Hormuz and their implications for Nigerian and West African maritime trade.
Oyetola Woos Turkish Investors for Fisheries Sector, Vows to Protect Artisanal Fishers
By Okeoghene Onoriobe | Waterways News
The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr Adegboyega Oyetola, has thrown Nigeria’s fisheries sector open to Turkish investment, insisting that any fresh capital coming into the industry must strengthen and not sideline the millions of Nigerians who depend on artisanal fishing for a living.
Oyetola made the pledge while receiving a delegation from Turkish fisheries and aquaculture firm CRD Impex, led by the company’s General Manager for Fisheries, Cem Tarhan, at his Abuja office. He told the investors the Federal Government was ready to create an investment-friendly climate for credible local and foreign players willing to bring capital, technology and modern value-chain solutions to the sector, on condition that such investment remains inclusive.
“We welcome investors who can bring capital, technology, expertise and modern value-chain solutions to the sector. However, investment must be inclusive and sustainable. It must complement and empower our artisanal fish producers, not undermine their livelihoods,” the Minister said
He listed inadequate infrastructure, poor access to modern fishing technology, weak cold-chain systems, limited processing and storage capacity, and gaps in market access as the major constraints holding back the sector, framing each as an opening for targeted investment rather than a dead end.
The Turkish team, which included CRD Impex founder Hanefi Cardak and Tetra Underwater Services founder Ersun Buyukgoze, toured key fisheries and aquaculture points around the country to size up the terrain first-hand. Stops included the Kirikiri Lighter Terminal in Lagos, the Ozumba Mbadiwe Fish Market in Lekki, and the Esuk Nsidung Beach Market, a major waterfront seafood hub in Calabar, Cross River State.
The Ministry described the visit as part of a broader push to attract serious investment into Nigeria’s blue economy while keeping the welfare of artisanal fishers central to that growth.
Nigeria Watch
The Turkish courtesy call lands squarely in the pattern this desk has tracked all year: big-ticket investment pledges for Nigeria’s waterways, paired with familiar assurances that the small operator won’t be crowded out. The test, as always, is what happens after the photo-op.
Nigeria’s artisanal fishing communities occupy the same economic space as the informal boat operators represented by WABOTAN and ATBOWATON, river- and creek-dependent Nigerians whose livelihoods rise or fall on decisions made far from the waterfront. The infrastructure gaps Oyetola cited which include, weak cold-chain systems, poor storage and limited market access, all mirror the exact complaints this desk has documented from inland waterway operators for years but modernisation announced from Abuja rarely reache the jetties.
Turkish capital chasing Nigerian fisheries and aquaculture is a genuinely new thread, distinct from the Strait of Hormuz shipping story or the CVFF disbursement saga this desk has followed closely. But the underlying question is the same one that has defined Oyetola’s tenure at the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy: will “inclusive investment” translate into contracts, cooperative partnerships and cold-chain infrastructure that artisanal operators can actually use or will it, like so many blue-economy pledges before it, stall at the courtesy-visit stage?
Waterways News will be watching for the first concrete CRD Impex commitment — site, timeline, or local partnership — as the marker of whether this one is different.
NPERA, NPA Open Technical Talks on Handover of Inland Dry Port Functions
By Ighoyota Onaibre | Waterways News
The Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency (NPERA) and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) have begun formal engagement on transferring inland dry port oversight to NPERA, marking the start of what both agencies describe as a critical phase in operationalising Nigeria’s new port regulatory framework.
At a management-level meeting between the two agencies, officials focused on the technical groundwork for the handover, chiefly how to draw clear lines of responsibility and avoid duplication among the government bodies with a stake in inland dry port administration.
NPERA’s Director-General/CEO, Dr Akutah Pius, framed the transition as flowing directly from the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr Adegboyega Oyetola, whom he credited with steering the process toward the sector’s broader development. Akutah was emphatic that NPERA could not carry out the transfer alone, and said the buy-in of every relevant stakeholder agency would be needed to see it through.
He indicated that the Ministry would stay central to coordinating the process even as specific mandates move to the agencies best placed to execute them. Akutah also pointed to the Minister’s earlier interventions during the NPERA Bill’s passage through the National Assembly, which he said had defused inter-agency friction and set the stage for the cooperation now underway.
Describing the purpose of the meeting, Akutah said it was meant to formally kick off the transfer of inland dry port responsibilities to NPERA in fulfilment of its statutory role as economic regulator of the ports sector. He singled out Section 51 of the NPERA Act as a provision that now needs to be put into practical effect to keep the transition orderly and ensure stakeholder roles are properly aligned.
To manage the process going forward, the NPERA boss proposed setting up a joint committee drawing in NPERA, NPA, the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), and the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy. He argued that inland dry ports matter well beyond the coastline. They extend maritime sector benefits into Nigeria’s hinterland and reinforce the country’s trade and logistics chain.
Responding on behalf of NPA, Managing Director Dr Abubakar Dantsoho welcomed the move and pledged his agency’s full operational and technical backing throughout the transition. He said the process had started on the right footing, and that NPA would furnish updated data on the current state of inland dry ports to inform further discussions, expressing confidence that continued engagement would help the agencies meet their shared objectives.
NPA’s Executive Director, Engr. Lekan Badmus, also commended NPERA for setting the collaboration in motion, calling the meeting a solid first step toward a smooth integration. He noted the two agencies have now moved into the technical phase of the exercise, with close attention being paid to eliminating overlapping functions.
Closing the meeting, Akutah said the proposed joint committee would reconvene with the Minister to seek further guidance and agree on next steps to keep the transition on track.
Nigeria Watch
This meeting is the first visible test of whether the NPERA Act’s promise of a rationalised port regulatory architecture can survive contact with Nigeria’s crowded agency landscape. Section 51’s transfer of inland dry port functions to NPERA looks straightforward on paper; in practice, it touches NPA’s traditional port administration turf, NIWA’s inland waterways mandate, and the Ministry’s coordinating role all at once, precisely the kind of overlapping jurisdiction that has bedevilled reform efforts elsewhere in the sector, most visibly in the long-running NIWA-LASWA tussle that only the Supreme Court could settle.
The proposed joint committee of NPERA, NPA, NIWA, and the Ministry, is a sensible mechanism, but Waterways News readers who have followed the CVFF disbursement saga know that Nigerian maritime governance has no shortage of well-designed committees whose outputs never quite reach implementation. What will matter is whether Akutah’s “technical phase” produces a binding timeline, not another round of goodwill statements.
For inland dry port operators and the hinterland trade corridors that depend on them, the stakes are practical: unclear jurisdiction between NPA and NPERA has historically meant slower cargo evacuation, duplicated levies, and uncertainty for freight forwarders planning routes away from the congested Lagos ports. If this transition is handled well, it strengthens the case for dry ports as genuine pressure valves for Apapa and Tin Can. If it stalls in inter-agency turf negotiation, it becomes one more entry in the gap between policy pronouncement and delivery that this desk continues to track.
Worth watching: whether Minister Oyetola’s office sets an explicit deadline when the committee reconvenes, and whether NIWA, whose inland waterways mandate intersects with dry port hinterland connectivity, gets more than a seat at the table.
Two More Tankers Struck in Strait of Hormuz as Attack Count Hits Five in a Week
By Okeoghene Onoriobe | Waterways News
Two more tankers have been hit while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, leaving two seafarers with minor injuries and pushing the number of reported attacks or security incidents against commercial vessels in the waterway to at least five since 16 September.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said an inbound tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile on Monday. Two crew members sustained minor injuries, but the vessel stayed under its own power and continued to its next port, with no environmental impact reported.
Hours later, UKMTO issued a second alert after an outbound LPG tanker reported being struck by debris from unknown projectiles. All crew were reported safe and the vessel also continued its voyage. Authorities are investigating both incidents, and UKMTO has not attributed either attack to a specific actor.
The two strikes build on a Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) advisory covering three earlier attacks between 16 and 18 September, one of which saw a tanker’s hull breached by a projectile, sparking a fire. JMIC continues to rate the threat level in the strait as “severe,” citing a high likelihood of deliberate hostile action and pointing to a pattern of harassment by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — drone overflights, surveillance of merchant vessels and VHF hailing, alongside the direct attacks.
Traffic through the chokepoint remains sharply depressed. Only 17 commodity vessels were visibly transiting over the weekend, down from 37 the week before and against a pre-war daily average of roughly 125. That figure excludes vessels sailing with their AIS transponders switched off, and JMIC notes a persistent gap between visible and actual traffic.
Nigeria Watch
For Nigerian maritime stakeholders, the Hormuz crisis is no longer a distant Gulf story. It is a cost line. Every fresh escalation feeds directly into the war-risk insurance premiums and freight rates that Nigerian importers, refiners and shipping agents ultimately absorb, since global tanker and container capacity pulled off the Hormuz route tightens supply elsewhere and pushes rates up across long-haul trades, including those serving West African ports.
The renewed attacks also sharpen the stakes around Nigeria’s push for a stronger voice at the IMO Council table and its broader blue-economy diplomacy under Minister Adegboyega Oyetola. A sustained Gulf disruption is exactly the kind of systemic shock that tests whether Nigeria’s seat translates into influence over how global shipping risk, insurance and rerouting decisions are made, rather than Nigeria simply absorbing the downstream cost.
Locally, the episode is a reminder of the layered nature of “maritime security” as a policy word: the Deep Blue Project and Gulf of Guinea security architecture address piracy and armed robbery close to home, but Nigeria’s ports and shippers remain exposed to security failures thousands of kilometres away in the Gulf.
Waterways News will continue tracking how the Hormuz situation feeds into freight cost pressure at Nigerian ports and NIMASA’s public messaging on the issue.
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