Iran Charging Ships Up to $2 Million to Transit Strait of Hormuz
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DUBAI, June 7 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) — Ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian permission are being charged an average fee of between $1.5 million and $2 million, CNN reported, citing a senior member of Iran’s parliament.
The fee was disclosed by Mohsen Zangeneh, a member of parliament’s Budget and Planning Commission, in an interview with Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency.
Iran has set up a management body called the Persian Gulf Strait Authority to oversee passage through the waterway.
The authority reported last week that more than 300 non-Iranian vessels had submitted information to obtain safe passage permits since operations began in early May.
Most of the vessels were oil tankers.
Fars reported that revenues collected under the scheme are deposited into the state treasury, with some payments made in goods and services rather than cash.
Iranian officials have insisted the fees are not tolls, describing them as charges for navigation, environmental and security-related services.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said last month that the charges relate to services connected to navigation and environmental protection in the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
U.S. President Donald Trump has rejected Iranian management of the strategic waterway and called for a return to freedom of navigation.
