Iran's Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) said on October 27 that it will take "legal action" against every Sinokor vessel from November 11. In the same post it warned cargo owners, stakeholders and insurers1. It is the first time the authority has singled out one company for such action5.

Sinokor is the world's largest owner of supertankers, or VLCCs, the 2 million barrel ships that dominate long-haul crude trade1, 6. Its fleet moved 105.6 million barrels through Hormuz in September, according to Vortexa, Equasis and Signal Group data2. That was almost 40% of the oil that crossed, and more than the next three owners combined2. Bahri of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait's KOTC and ADNOC's shipping arm moved 97.3 million barrels between them2. Lloyd's List Intelligence estimates that half of all tankers now transiting Hormuz are linked to Sinokor5.

What the notice says, and what it leaves open

The PGSA said Sinokor ships had "committed the highest number of passage violations over the past three months"1. It said enforcement action had already been taken against at least seven of them, without saying what that action was1. Previous enforcement has meant attacks on ships using the southern Hormuz channel, The Maritime Executive reported5. The authority's published list of non-compliant ships runs to 125 vessels, several already attacked, and it says it has acted against 405.

Sinokor did not immediately respond to a request for comment1. The post does not define "all vessels of this company", so coverage of chartered-in ships, or of any product or gas carriers, is unclear1. The expansion has been in crude tankers: more than 70 bought this year, with 80 to 90 owned ships reported5.

How much India-bound tonnage is exposed

India drew about 54% of its crude from the Middle East in September, up from 32% in August4. That was around 2.8 million barrels a day of total imports of about 5.33 million barrels a day4. The UAE and Iraq are its second and third largest suppliers after Russia4. Sinokor ships have carried Saudi, UAE, Iraqi and, more recently, Qatari crude, ship-tracking data show2.

No published figure for Sinokor's share of India-bound cargoes was found. The closest evidence is transit data: five of the 10 inbound VLCCs among 16 Hormuz crossings on October 23 to 25 were Sinokor-operated, S&P Global Commodities at Sea said7.

Rates were already extreme before the notice. Platts assessed a VLCC from the Persian Gulf to West Coast India at $95.83 a tonne on October 19, against $19.15 a tonne on February 27, before the war3. TD3C, the Middle East Gulf to China benchmark, ended the week at WS1,208.13, or $1,287,851 a day round trip8. The IEA put the cost of moving Middle East Gulf crude to Asia above $37 a barrel by mid-October, more than $74 million for a 2 million barrel cargo6.

What it means for Indian buyers

The cost reaches Indian refiners mainly through price, not through their own chartering. Almost all Indian crude cargoes are now bought on a delivered basis, against about half earlier, Equirus Securities noted9. Freight sits inside the seller's price. The average Indian basket reached $120.46 a barrel to October 26, its highest since March 20129.

Capacity is the second channel. Shuttle runs from Gulf terminals to transfer points outside Hormuz are what keep exports flowing10. Crude loaded inside Hormuz fetches $20 to $30 a barrel more than at the lightering zone, the spread that pays owners to take the risk10. If much of the shuttle fleet becomes unusable, the tonnage that remains would be bid away.

Substitutes are thin. The obvious spare owners are Gulf state fleets, and the PGSA has already targeted Saudi and Kuwaiti tanker operations without naming them5. Atlantic basin barrels cost $8 to $16 a barrel more to ship to Asia than Fujairah loadings over the four weeks to October 25, Vortexa data show11.

LPG is a smaller channel. India imported 1.40 million tonnes of LPG in September, up from 1.30 million tonnes in August12. US Ambassador Sergio Gor said the US share of India's LPG imports rose from under 10% to 67% in a year13. Gulf cargoes still move: a UAE-linked LPG tanker that had transferred cargo at Vadinar was heading back to Ruwais to load on October 247. LPG under-recoveries at the three state fuel retailers were around ₹62,000 crore9.

The notice also creates a screening duty. It names insurance providers as well as cargo owners1. Adani Enterprises agreed to pay $275 million in May 2026 in a sanctions settlement, even though, according to OFAC, it had screened ships, operators and sellers before each LPG cargo and found the names clean14.

What to watch

  • November 1: whether the PGSA lists Sinokor's ships or acts on them at sea1, 5.
  • Insurer notices: whether war-risk underwriters or protection and indemnity clubs restrict cover, which would bite faster than any Iranian action1.
  • The next VLCC fixtures to West Coast India, and what charterers pay3.
  • Whether Bahri, KOTC or ADNOC ships are named next, since they are the replacement capacity2, 5.