Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd has asked crude suppliers to avoid transit through the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz in a spot import tender, the tender document showed. The tender seeks up to one million (mn) barrels of crude oil on a delivered basis with loading dates between August 25 and September 6. The instruction follows disruptions to Red Sea traffic off Yemen by Tehran?aligned Houthi actions that have aimed to blockade Saudi exports and widened tensions linked to the US?Iran confrontation.

The company included a clause instructing that crude loading and transit via the Red Sea or the Strait of Hormuz should be avoided, a caveat not previously seen in Indian spot crude tenders. The refiner had not awarded its previous tender that sought oil and did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Market participants have monitored shipping routes closely since the disruptions began last week, citing elevated risk and potential delays.

A source familiar with the matter said the refiner had taken a precautionary view to minimise the chance of supply interruption along two of the world’s main maritime oil trade routes and added that the clause would remain in future tenders if the situation in West Asia did not improve. Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals is a subsidiary of state?run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and operates a 300,000 barrels per day refinery in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. The tender stipulation underscores concern among energy buyers over the security of short sea transits and the need for contingency planning.

Avoiding the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz typically requires rerouting shipments around the Cape of Good Hope, which extends voyage times and increases freight costs and the time crude remains in transit. In past disruptions refiners and traders have sought alternative loadings, adjusted tanker schedules and passed higher shipping charges on to buyers, influencing import timing and refinery runs. Market participants managing near?term supply arrangements will watch the development closely.