Chokepoints are narrow channels along widely used global sea routes that are critical to global energy trade and security because of the large volumes of petroleum and other liquids and liquified natural gas that pass through them. International energy markets depend on reliable transport routes. The blockage of oil transit through a major chokepoint, even temporarily, can lead to substantial supply delays and higher shipping costs, resulting in higher world energy prices. Although most chokepoints can be circumvented by using other routes—which adds significantly to transit time—some chokepoints have no practical alternatives.
This report analyzes seven chokepoints, disruptions to which could add thousands of miles of transit in alternative routes and affect oil and natural gas prices. The world’s most important strategic chokepoints by volume of oil transit are the Strait of Hormuz, leading out of the Persian Gulf, and the Strait of Malacca, which links the Indian and Pacific Oceans (Figure 1). This report also discusses the Cape of Good Hope, which is not a chokepoint but is a major trade route and alternative route to other chokepoints.
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