Two Saudi crude tankers hit by projectiles while exiting the Strait of Hormuz

SINGAPORE - Two supertankers carrying Saudi crude were struck by unknown projectiles within minutes of each other while leaving the Strait of Hormuz late Monday, shipping intelligence firms Marisks and Kpler told Reuters.

Each vessel had loaded about 2 million barrels of Saudi oil at the Juaymah terminal last week, Kpler data showed. Marisks said the Saudi-flagged very large crude carrier Sidr was hit about 16.6 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman, around 1952 UTC. Minutes later, the Liberian-flagged VLCC Senegal Prosperity was struck by three projectiles about 17 nautical miles east of Khasab. All crew were reported safe.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency reported a tanker hit by three projectiles in the same area during an outbound Hormuz transit, with no casualties or environmental damage reported. Marisks called the near-simultaneous incidents a further escalation in the threat environment along the Omani corridor.

Oil prices gained Tuesday as markets weighed shipping risk after recent U.S. and Iranian exchanges of fire and after President Donald Trump said further strikes against Iran remained possible. The Strait of Hormuz is a key route for Gulf oil bound for Asia and other markets.

Neither Marisks nor UKMTO publicly named a perpetrator in the initial advisories. For American drivers and retirees, the immediate question is price: when tankers take hits near Hormuz, crude often jumps even before any long shutdown is confirmed.