Iran Expands Blacklist to 124 Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz

The Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), under Iranian control and also referred to as PSGA, expanded its blacklist of vessels deemed 'non-compliant' in the Strait of Hormuz, threatening flagged ships with detention, seizure or fines. According to Lloyd's List, the list added 43 new vessels to reach a total of 124, while Seatrade Maritime, as of October 19, counted 122 entries corresponding to 121 unique vessels, since Angola Prosperity appears twice. Trade News, for its part, put the expanded list at 120 vessels, among which sunk ships are included.

Among the names added are vessels that suffered recent attacks, such as GFS Pride, GFS Giselle and Angola Prosperity, as detailed by Lloyd's List, which also noted that Iran broadened its scrutiny of ship-to-ship transfer operations in the Gulf of Oman by adding seven Sinokor VLCCs. Seatrade Maritime added that at least 39 of the vessels were attacked before being included on the list, and that 18 of the 20 added on October 15 had already been struck previously, among them the Ocean Molica, attacked by US forces. According to the same outlet, only two of the October 15 additions show no confirmed attack: NV Sunshine, which Iran claims to have attacked on October 9 but whose operator denies this, and Singapore Energy, a VLCC that aborted its transit through Hormuz on October 5 after being threatened by the IRGC.

Seatrade Maritime noted that, of the 121 vessels on the list, 19 were attacked during October and at least 14 of them were added to the list after having already been targeted in an attack. The outlet calculated that, in total, at least 50 of the 121 vessels have documented attacks in the Hormuz area, which in its view turns the list into a mechanism of after-the-fact retaliation rather than an advance warning for shipping.

Trade News reported that the confirmed number of vessels affected by attacks reached 29 ships in three weeks, while UKMTO acknowledged that it underestimates the actual number of incidents recorded in the region.

Seatrade Maritime noted that, since the list was first published in late August, three vessels have been removed: Blue Star I, the Indian bulk carrier Maha Roos, and the Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier Xing Sheng. The PGSA, which provides a channel to request a vessel's removal without publishing clear approval criteria, also warned charterers that it could blacklist their entire fleet if it is found that they pressure vessels to transit Hormuz without Iranian authorization.