Oil transit chokepoints
Oil transit chokepoints are those locations that are critically important to world oil trade because so much oil passes through them, yet they are narrow and theoretically could be blocked -- at least temporarily. In addition, chokepoints are susceptible to pirate and terrorist attacks, as well as shipping accidents in their narrow channels that could produce oil spills.
A significant volume of oil is traded internationally by oil tankers and oil pipelines. About 2/3 of the world’s oil trade (both crude oils and refined products) moves by oil tankers. About 43 million barrels per day of that trade is crude oil. Tankers have made global (intercontinental) transport of oil possible, as they are low cost, efficient, and extremely flexible.
Oil transported by sea generally follows a fixed set of maritime routes. Along the way, oil tankers encounter several geographic chokepoints, or narrow channels, such as the Strait of Hormuz leading out of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Malacca linking the Indian Ocean (and oil coming from the Middle East) with the Pacific Ocean (and major consuming markets in Asia). Other important maritime chokepoints include the Bab el-Mandab passage from the Arabian Sea to the Red Sea; the Panama Canal and the Panama Pipeline connecting the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans; the Suez Canal and the Sumed Pipeline connecting the Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea; and the Bosporus Straits linking the Black Sea (and oil coming from the Caspian Sea region) to the Mediterranean Sea.
Not all tanker trade routes use the same size ship. Each route usually has one size that is the clear economic winner, based on voyage length, port and canal constraints and volume. Thus, crude exports from the Middle East -- high volumes that travel long distances -- are moved mainly by VLCC’s (200,000 to 300,000 dead weight tons) typically carrying over 2 million barrels of oil on every voyage.
Pipelines, on the other hand, are the mode of choice for transcontinental oil movements. Pipelines are critical for landlocked crudes and also complement tankers at certain key locations by relieving bottlenecks or providing shortcuts. Pipelines come into their own in intra-regional trade. They are the primary option for transcontinental transportation, because they are at least an order of magnitude cheaper than any alternative such as rail, barge, or road, and because political vulnerability is a small or non-existent issue within a nation's border or between neighbors such as the United States and Canada. Pipelines are also an important oil transport mode in mainland Europe, although the system is much smaller, matching the shorter distances.
Detailed descriptions of world oil transit chokepoints:
Bab el-Mandab
Bosporus Straits
Strait of Hormuz
Malacca
Panama Canal
Russian Oil and Gas Pipelines/Export Ports
Suez Canal
|
Disclaimer: This article is taken wholly from, or contains information that was originally published by, the Energy Information Administration. Topic editors and authors for the Encyclopedia of Earth may have edited its content or added new information. The use of information from the Energy Information Administration should not be construed as support for or endorsement by that organization for any new information added by EoE personnel, or for any editing of the original content. |