Gasoline buyers in East Africa and Pakistan are drawing supplies from Europe, India and Saudi Arabia's Red Sea refineries as war-related disruptions delay cargoes flows from key Mideast Gulf exporters, shipping data and market sources.
In Kenya, April gasoline supply has so far remained largely intact, but the loss of cargoes from the UAE, which was the country's largest supplier last year, has already shifted sourcing towards Europe, India and Saudi Arabia's Red Sea refineries. No new vessels have been chartered from the UAE since the start of the Iran war, while some Mideast Gulf cargoes bound for Kenya have also been rescheduled, a Kenya-based market source said. UAE supplied 48pc of Kenya's gasoline imports in 2025, data from oil analytics firm Vortexa show.
Despite the US-Iran ceasefire announced on 7 April, shipowners remain wary of lifting cargoes from Mideast Gulf ports, with sentiment further dampened by Iranian warnings of retaliation against regional ports following US naval blockade plans.
Most of the Mideast Gulf-origin gasoline reaching Kenya is now coming from Saudi Arabia's Red Sea ports of Yanbu and Jizan, which are located outside the strait of Hormuz. At least 72,000t of finished gasoline has arrived from the two Saudi ports since the conflict began — the first such flows since November.
The Kenyan government said supply agreements with Middle East national oil companies remain on track through mid-April, with more deliveries expected by the end of the month. But that contrasts with signs of strain in the domestic transport sector, where operators say some filling stations are seeing long queues while others have run dry. In a circular seen by Argus, the Kenya Transporters Association said some operators were facing fuel rationing, limits on bulk supply and tighter credit from oil marketing companies, despite official assurances that stocks remain sufficient.
Europe has increasingly become a notable supplier, with at least six vessels booked since 28 February to transport a total 512,000t of gasoline from Belgium and Latvia to Kenya. In comparison, only two vessels carrying around 120,000t gasoline in December, and one carrying 71,000t in January had headed to Kenya from Europe.
India has also stepped in supplying smaller cargoes. Around 60,000t of gasoline was shipped from India to Kenya on the Torm Emma on 2 April, according to Vortexa data. But a Kenya-based trader said Indian supplies can pose quality challenges, including higher sulphur content and lower octane specifications.
A similar pattern is emerging in Tanzania, where Indian gasoline cargoes are making up for the reduced UAE supplies. No vessels have departed the UAE for Tanzania since 28 February, even though the UAE was its second-largest supplier in 2025 after India. In comparison, the UAE shipped around 34,000t of gasoline to Tanzania in February and 38,000t in January this year. The only Mideast Gulf cargo that has reached Tanzania since the war began was a 35,000t shipment from Saudi Arabia's Yanbu refinery — the first such flow from there since December. India shipped about 140,000t to Tanzania in March, up from roughly 70,000t in February, according to ship-tracking data. A local trader said some of those volumes are facing discharge delays because of berth constraints at Tanzanian ports.
Pakistan is seeing a similar shift in its gasoline trade flows as well, with European cargoes replacing disrupted Mideast Gulf supplies. At least two vessels — the Lamu and Metro Mistral — are due to discharge in Pakistan in April carrying gasoline from Europe, according to ship-tracking data. But this atypical trade flow is expensive. The Metro Mistral was chartered by TotalEnergies on 10 March at $5.37mn for its Europe-to-Pakistan voyage. In comparison, Oman's OQ chartered a vessel for $1.55mn for a recent Sohar-Pakistan gasoline voyage. The last heard Fujairah-Pakistan booking was around $750,000, up from roughly $500,000 before the war.
