Supertanker Gem No. 2 Struck Off UAE Coast as Iran Expands Shipping Attacks Across Gulf

When the oil tanker On Peace was struck by a projectile off the Omani coast earlier this week, the attack followed a familiar pattern of violence confined to the Strait of Hormuz. The strike on the supertanker Gem No. 2 on Friday departed from that geography.[4][5]

The Panama-flagged vessel was hit 13 nautical miles west of the United Arab Emirates, deep inside the wider Persian Gulf. The 302,000-deadweight-ton ship, fully laden with crude oil, issued a distress alert at 1000 GMT after an unknown projectile triggered a fire onboard.[3][4][6]

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) confirmed the fire was rapidly extinguished, leaving the massive vessel anchored off the UAE coast. Authorities are currently investigating the status of the crew, the structural integrity of the ship, and any potential environmental impact.[4][6]

While no group immediately claimed direct responsibility for the Gem No. 2 strike, the incident aligns with a broader campaign of maritime intimidation. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy explicitly formalized this geographic widening of the threat corridor shortly after the incident.[1][3]

The IRGC issued a statement on Friday warning that vessels would no longer be safe simply by clearing the strait. "Any vessel that passes through an unauthorised passage will be pursued throughout the region, and its punishment will be definitive," the IRGC Navy stated.[3]

Notably, the Gem No. 2 does not appear on the 100-vessel non-compliance blacklist maintained by Iran's Persian Gulf Strait Authority. The vessel, managed in Taiwan and owned by Global Energy Maritime, had been operating in the region without prior public warnings.[3]

Its targeting suggests that the criteria for what Iranian forces consider a non-compliant vessel are broadening. The campaign is now capturing ships that operators previously believed were operating safely outside the immediate zone of contention.[2][3]

This expanding threat radius directly impacts the logistics of global energy distribution. Before the conflict escalated, the Strait of Hormuz facilitated roughly one-fifth of the world's crude oil and liquefied natural gas flows.[5]

While Gulf producers had recently managed to restore crude exports to near pre-war levels, the expanded attack radius introduces new insurable risks. That financial exposure no longer ends once a vessel clears the immediate strait.[1][5]

Freight markets are already repricing to account for the sustained disruption. Charter costs for large crude carriers moving oil from the Middle East to Asia have surged, as underwriters reassess the premiums required to cover hulls and cargo in a widening conflict zone.[1]

A threat that follows a ship out of the strait changes the fundamental arithmetic of maritime trade. The insurable risk now persists deep into waters that commercial operators previously considered safe havens.[1][2]

The tempo of maritime strikes has accelerated sharply across the board. The International Maritime Organization recorded at least nine attacks on commercial ships in the first week of October alone, making it the most volatile period since the conflict began.[5]

The UKMTO has issued at least one warning every day this month, reflecting a sustained campaign. These strikes have left dozens of seafarers injured, including 12 crew members aboard the On Peace just days prior.[3][5]

Commercial traffic through the waterway has consequently plummeted as operators pause transits to evaluate the new security paradigm. Data from maritime analytics firm Kpler indicates that traffic dropped to just seven transiting ships on Tuesday and 10 on Wednesday.[5]

Those figures mark the lowest daily transit volumes recorded since July. The US Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Center has advised commercial shipping operators that the frequency of incidents requires elevated crew vigilance and continuous industry monitoring.[5][6]

If the expanded targeting strategy successfully chokes off the recent rebound in Middle Eastern oil exports, the downstream consequences will ripple through global energy markets. Refineries in Asia rely heavily on steady crude shipments from the Gulf.[1][5]

Those facilities may soon be forced to draw down inventories or seek alternative, more expensive suppliers. The maritime industry must now treat the entire Persian Gulf as a high-risk environment, fundamentally shifting the operational baseline for global energy transport.[1][2]