VLCC huge laden with Iranian crude spotted heading up towards China

VLCC Huge, laden with roughly 2 Mbbl of Iranian crude, has resurfaced after going dark earlier this month, with satellite imagery suggesting the tanker is continuing towards China following an unusual Lombok Strait transit aimed at avoiding heightened enforcement risks along the Malacca corridor.

NITC-controlled VLCC Huge, carrying an estimated 2 Mbbl of Iranian crude, has resurfaced in satellite imagery near the Vietnamese coast after disappearing from AIS coverage earlier this month. The vessel was last seen on AIS on 3 May while transiting Lombok Strait before going dark again. Fresh satellite imagery captured on 13 May shows Huge transiting northward past Vietnam, strongly suggesting the tanker is continuing towards China.

While the vessel’s final discharge destination remains unclear, the vessel could potentially be heading towards offshore areas near Hong Kong, where dark ship-to-ship (STS) transfers involving Iranian crude have been observed.

Huge's AIS and satellite location tracks on 3 and 13 May

‍Source: Kpler, European Space Agency

Kpler tracked Huge as one of the first two confirmed Iranian crude carriers — alongside Derya — to transit via Lombok Strait instead of the traditional Malacca route, reflecting rising enforcement risks along Southeast Asia’s main shipping corridor for Middle Eastern crude flows.

Huge loaded crude at Kharg Island around 1 April and was later confirmed near Chabahar via Kpler satellite imagery on 13 April, hours before US blockade measures formally took effect. The vessel subsequently went dark before reappearing on AIS on 2 May while transiting Lombok Strait, suggesting efforts to avoid the increasingly monitored Malacca corridor.

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