Iran plans China preference on Hormuz fees

Iran’s ambassador to China, Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, said Tehran will give Beijing and other friendly countries special consideration on planned service fees for ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz. Reaction pending. The comments add uncertainty to talks with the United States and Oman over the long-term rules for one of the world’s most important energy corridors.

Hormuz fee plan tests transit rules

Fazli said at the World Peace Forum in Beijing on July 4 that Iran now treats the strait as a national security issue after the four-month conflict involving the United States and Israel. He said the proposed charges would cover passage security, vessel supervision and environmental management, and argued they should not be described as a toll.

The interim US-Iran arrangement reached in June provided for 60 days of free commercial transit, but officials have not announced what replaces it. The waterway normally carries about a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas, making any dispute over access a direct concern for energy markets, tanker operators and Gulf exporters.

Officials in Washington and Gulf Arab states reject charges on vessels using the route. Some European governments have signalled they could accept a fee system if it is not applied by nationality, which makes Fazli’s reference to preferential terms a potential fault line in the talks.

Shipping caution remains visible. At least eight vessels trying to leave the Persian Gulf along the Omani coast turned back between July 3 and July 4. Transit behavior from July 6 to July 12 will be the next test of whether the reopening is gaining credibility or keeping a risk premium in energy freight markets.