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Why Iran’s oil stored at sea has surged to a record high
The build-up comes as Iran, one of OPEC’s largest producers, faces its biggest anti-government protests in years.
Iran has accumulated a record volume of oil at sea, equivalent to about 50 days of production. This is as Chinese purchases have slowed due to sanctions and Tehran moves to shield its supplies from the risk of potential US strikes, shipping data firm Kpler said.
According to Kpler, Iranian crude and condensate stored on tankers, either in transit or as floating storage, climbed to a record 166 million barrels in the week ended January 11, the highest level since its records began in 2016, Reuters reported.
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What is happening?
The build-up comes as Iran, one of OPEC’s largest producers, faces its biggest anti-government protests in years, while US President Donald Trump has warned of possible military action.
Kpler analyst Homayoun Falakshahi said Iran boosted offshore storage to avoid shutting down production after Chinese imports slowed in late 2025, the Reuters report added.
Chinese refiners were constrained by limited crude import quotas and already high domestic inventories, he said.
Vortexa analysts said Iranian crude stored at sea rose by nearly 4% in the first week of January due to challenges in offloading the cargo.
"Most of the cargoes that have loaded in Iran over the past week will have been fixed well before the current tensions," Vortexa analyst Mick Strautmann said in an email to Reuters.
Iran is also trying to move as many barrels as possible away from the Gulf to limit geopolitical risks to its exports. About half of the oil stored at sea is currently located near Singapore, according to Kpler.
