Surging tanker rates have made direct Pacific voyages by smaller tankers more competitive, while VLCC charter rates have approached $500,000 per day.
Higher tanker rates have changed the economics of moving Canadian crude to Asia. Instead of transferring cargoes onto larger vessels off Southern California, smaller tankers are increasingly sailing directly across the Pacific. By August 2026, none of the Canada-to-Asia cargoes cited in the report used the California transfer route, compared with about 78% in June 2024.
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