An ethane tanker, identified as having loaded in the United States, was observed by ship tracking data to be heading towards India on Wednesday (June 11, 2025). This change in destination comes after the U.S. government implemented new requirements for its exporters to seek licenses for shipping the shale gas to its top buyer, China, reports Reuters.
Unusual Diversion
A Liberian-flagged ethane tanker, has made an unusual diversion, signaling Dahej on the West Coast of India as its new destination after loading at Energy Transfer’s Nederland terminal in the U.S. This marks a significant shift in its usual trade route, as the vessel has exclusively traversed between the United States and China’s Satellite Chemical’s Lianyungang petrochemical facility since July 2022.
LSEG and Kpler ship tracking data, citing the vessel’s bill of lading, confirm that the final buyer of this ethane cargo is India’s Reliance Industries.
This redirection comes amid growing trade tensions between the U.S. and China, specifically regarding ethane exports. Energy Transfer and Enterprise Products Partners, two major U.S. ethane producers and exporters, have both revealed that they received letters from the U.S. Commerce Department requiring them to apply for a license to ship ethane to China.
Furthermore, Enterprise stated it received a notice from the U.S. government of its intent to deny emergency requests for three proposed export cargoes of ethane totaling approximately 2.2 million barrels to China.
Chinese petrochemical firms heavily rely on ethane as a feedstock due to its cost-effectiveness compared to naphtha. Conversely, U.S. oil and gas producers depend on China to purchase their natural gas liquids, as the domestic supply currently outstrips demand. The diversion of the vessel underscores how these escalating trade tensions are directly impacting established energy flows and prompting the rerouting of crucial commodities.
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Source: Reuters
