Flows of jet fuel through the Suez Canal in the Bab al-Mandab Strait have picked up in recent months as continuing attacks due to the US-Iran war prompt shipping companies to avoid the Strait of Hormuz.

Flows through the Suez Canal stood at 405,400 metric tons in June, out of the total flows of 432,900 mt from the East of Suez to Europe, according to S&P Global Commodities at Sea data. This means that only 27,500 mt or 6.35% of total flows were diverted around the Cape of Good Hope in June.

This is significantly lower than 50% of the total flows going around the Cape at the same time last year. In June 2024, 1.5 million mt of the total 1.8 million mt that came from the East of Suez had been diverted around the Cape of Good Hope, with only about 300,000 mt going through the Suez.

Ships began rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope in late 2023 to avoid Houthi attacks linked to the Iran-Israel war, and flows remained subdued throughout 2024 and the first half of 2025, before gradually normalizing.

Freight and insurance costs had surged following the attacks in the Suez, driving shipowners to take the longer Cape of Good Hope route, approximately 10-14 days from Asia to Europe.

“We don’t see any issues in the Bab al-Mandab Strait now,” said a trader.

However, attacks in the strait have continued, albeit less frequently. Still, the trader said shippers consider the Suez Canal safer than the Strait of Hormuz at the moment.

Some Middle Eastern oil companies have been using inland pipelines to transport oil to Red Sea ports, then using the Suez Canal as an alternative route to supply oil into Europe, he said.

Market participants have said that this will become more common as energy companies seek to reduce their reliance on the Strait of Hormuz amid the unresolved Middle East war.

Abu Dhabi has ramped up construction of its West-East pipeline to Fujairah as it looks to expand its oil export capacity and bypass the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint, according to media reports and market participants.

Source: PLATTS