HMM's very large crude carrier (VLCC) Universal Winner, the first Korean vessel to exit the Strait of Hormuz after the Middle East war, arrived off Ulsan on the 10th. It has been about three weeks since it left the Strait of Hormuz under consultations between the Korean government and Iran.
Universal Winner entered Ulsan Port at about 2:30 p.m. that day carrying 2 million barrels of Kuwaiti crude. With assistance from a pilot and tugboats at 3:30 p.m., it berthed at the buoy, SK Energy's offshore crude unloading facility located 2–3 kilometers from shore, and is scheduled to conduct unloading operations over two days.
Universal Winner was the first among 26 Korean vessels trapped in the Strait of Hormuz after the Middle East war to exit the strait on the 20th of last month. This was a measure based on consultations between Korea and Iran.
The cargo owner of the vessel is SK Trading International, a crude oil and petroleum products trading affiliate of SK Group. Universal Winner entered the Strait of Hormuz on Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel began attacks against Iran, and on March 4 loaded 2 million barrels of crude from the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC).
A total of 21 crew members are aboard the vessel, including nine Koreans and 12 foreigners, and all are reportedly in good health.
During unloading, food and daily necessities will be supplied to the ship. Before departure, some crew members are expected to disembark for reasons such as shift changes or leave.