Clarksons Research said only one VLCC per day crossed the Bab el-Mandeb last week. File Image / Pixabay 

Renewed Red Sea security threats could more than double voyage distances for Saudi crude shipments from Yanbu, according to Clarksons Research.

The warning comes as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains around 90% below pre-conflict levels, keeping pressure on global tanker markets, Steve Gordon, Global Head of Clarksons Research, said in an emailed report on Monday.

Yemen's Houthi group claimed attacks on two Saudi-linked tankers last week, the first such incidents in the Red Sea this year.

Clarksons Research said VLCC traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb has since fallen to just one vessel per day, down from an average of three per day during the second quarter.

Meanwhile, vessel traffic through Hormuz averaged just 13 crossings per day over the past week, while crude exports through the strait fell to about 2 million bpd, down from 15 million bpd before the conflict.

As crude exports shifted away from the Gulf, Yanbu shipped an average of 3.8 million bpd over the past week, around 3 million bpd above normal.

However, Clarksons warned that an extended avoidance of the Bab el-Mandeb could also disrupt this alternative route.

For cargoes bound for Asia, a tanker sailing from Yanbu to China would need to travel about 15,000 nautical miles via the Cape of Good Hope if avoiding the Gulf of Aden, compared with roughly 6,700 nautical miles on the direct route.

Clarksons estimates that rerouting 50% of Yanbu's exports to Asian markets could increase global crude tanker tonne-mile demand by around 5%, supporting freight rates.

Average VLCC earnings rose 13% week on week to $145,000/day, while Suezmax and Aframax earnings reached $167,000/day and $130,000/day, respectively.

Longer voyages could also lift global bunker fuel demand, with global bunker supplier and trader Peninsula previously warning that renewed Red Sea diversions would tighten bunker fuel supply as ships spend more time sailing around the Cape of Good Hope.