Satellite Images Reveal Presence of Three Oil Tankers Near Loading Terminals on Iran’s Kharg Island

Misbar’s team monitored maritime activity around the oil export terminals of Kharg Island in the Arabian Gulf using satellite imagery from the Sentinel-2 satellite during the first week of May 2026. Sequential images show a clear change in tanker traffic density around the loading facilities between April 18 and May 6, 2026.

Tanker Distribution and Berthing Locations

Images captured on May 6 documented the presence of three oil tankers around the loading facilities on Kharg Island. Two tankers appeared docked at the main T-shaped terminal at the Kharg oil port, while a third tanker was observed near the shoreline at the island’s western harbor.

The images alone are insufficient to conclusively determine the identity of the tankers, their actual cargoes or destinations. However, they clearly reveal active maritime patterns around one of Iran’s most important oil export facilities.

Timeline of Maritime Activity

A chronological comparison shows that the loading terminals appeared free of tankers in imagery from April 18. By May 1, imagery showed a single tanker docked at the main terminal.

In the May 6 update, the number of observed tankers increased to three simultaneously, indicating a notable shift in operational activity around the island within less than three weeks.

Why Is Kharg Island Important?

These observations are significant because of Kharg Island’s central role in Iran’s oil infrastructure. Specialized references indicate that the island serves as a major hub for collecting, storing and loading crude oil and condensates onto tankers before export. It is also connected to pipelines originating from key production areas inside Iran.

As a result, any change in tanker density around the island remains an important visual indicator of activity at Tehran’s primary oil export gateway.

The images come amid mounting pressure on Iranian oil exports following the start of the reported U.S. maritime blockade in April 2026. Reports citing data from Vortexa said Iranian oil exports fell by more than 80 percent after the blockade, with only a limited number of tankers carrying Iranian oil leaving the Gulf of Oman between April 13 and 25.

Subsequent reports also indicated that continued maritime restrictions pushed Iran to store quantities of oil in onshore tanks and aboard tankers, amid warnings that storage capacity reaching its limit could force production cuts to protect oil field infrastructure.

In this context, Sentinel-2 imagery alone does not prove that the three tankers were conducting completed export operations. However, it documents simultaneous maritime presence around Kharg’s loading terminals, providing an important visual indicator of continued activity at Iranian oil shipping facilities despite the surrounding maritime and logistical pressures on Tehran’s exports.

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