Number of Oil Tankers by Country (2026)
The number of oil tankers measures how many oil tankers are registered under a country's flag. Unlike fleet statistics measured in deadweight tonnage, this indicator counts vessels rather than their capacity, making it useful for comparing oil tanker fleets by the number of ships they contain. The statistics are based on the UNCTADstat database. The dataset covers 196 countries and territories, and the table below lists 161 of them that record any oil tankers in the period; their combined oil tanker fleet stood at 12,599 ships in 2026.
China recorded the most oil tankers in 2026 with 1,799 vessels. The Marshall Islands ranked second with 1,019, followed by Indonesia (883), Liberia (855), and Panama (785). Japan (663), Singapore (607), Russia (418), Hong Kong (344), and Malta (331) complete the top ten. Oil tanker fleets are concentrated among a relatively small number of major national fleets and open registries. China alone accounts for about 14 percent of the tankers in the table, while the top five countries together account for about 42 percent. Among the 161 countries listed, 7 register more than 500 oil tankers, while 12 report a nil fleet for 2026. In Asia, China (1,799) records by far the largest number of oil tankers, ahead of Indonesia (883), Japan (663), and Singapore (607). Thailand (250), South Korea (217), and the Philippines (215) also register more than 200 vessels each. In Europe, Russia (418) records the largest fleet by tanker count, followed by Malta (331) and Greece (256). Türkiye (137), Denmark (98), Norway (79), and Italy (71) follow, while Germany (29) and the United Kingdom (9) have relatively small fleets. In the Americas, Panama (785) records the largest number of oil tankers, with the Bahamas (167) next and the United States (76) following. In Africa, Liberia (855) dominates, followed by Nigeria (142) and Egypt (42). In the Middle East, Iran (86) and Saudi Arabia (75) record the most, while Oman grew from none in 2021 to 35 in 2026. In Oceania, the Marshall Islands (1,019) records the largest number of oil tankers through open-registry registration, followed by Palau (85) and the Cook Islands (40). Among open-registry economies, the Marshall Islands, Liberia, and Panama are the largest by tanker count. China recorded the largest increase between 2021 and 2026, rising from 1,114 to 1,799 oil tankers. Indonesia added 177 vessels, from 706 to 883, and Palau grew from 38 to 85 (up 47). The Marshall Islands added 43, Nigeria 33, and Oman grew from none to 35. Singapore recorded the largest decline, from 694 to 607 oil tankers (down 87), followed by Malta (down 79) and Greece (down 79). The Bahamas declined by 58, and Hong Kong by 52. The statistics are based on the UNCTADstat database, indicator Number of ships (oil tankers), which counts the oil tankers registered under each country's flag. According to UNCTAD, the fleet registration statistics cover all commercial ships of 100 gross tons and above. The main comparison uses 2026 data where available, and the latest available year for countries without a 2026 observation. Countries with no oil tankers in any year of the period are excluded from the table. In the table, a zero reflects a nil fleet, while an empty cell means that no value was reported; the two are never mixed up in the calculations.Countries With the Most Oil Tankers in 2026
Number of Oil Tankers by Country (2026)
Number of Oil Tankers Around the World
Largest Changes in Number of Oil Tankers, 2021–2026
Number of Oil Tankers by Country (2026)
#
1
1114
1680
1784
1816
1786
1799
2
976
1025
1039
1024
961
1019
3
848
910
1037
1046
904
855
4
774
785
870
974
968
785
5
706
709
719
818
839
883
6
694
630
567
554
557
607
7
657
660
657
657
661
663
8
410
394
355
315
331
331
9
408
392
390
364
384
418
10
396
404
396
391
389
344
11
335
310
297
274
261
256
12
258
252
248
253
251
250
13
225
213
191
179
167
167
14
224
224
223
221
216
217
15
210
210
208
206
210
215
16
152
155
152
158
165
167
17
147
162
165
167
166
164
18
137
135
144
151
147
153
19
127
128
132
137
130
137
20
126
137
134
134
120
115
21
109
113
130
129
136
142
22
107
103
92
85
108
179
23
103
100
94
87
78
71
24
102
117
107
100
104
98
25
95
94
95
79
76
79
26
85
84
87
87
86
86
27
82
80
80
80
100
82
28
70
69
54
57
58
58
29
67
61
56
55
54
47
30
67
68
68
74
73
76
31
66
56
55
59
65
68
32
58
60
47
33
48
51
33
58
58
55
57
67
75
34
56
55
49
44
50
50
35
53
51
60
88
79
40
36
51
46
64
52
66
66
37
49
46
57
68
70
70
38
43
44
44
47
46
46
39
41
41
41
43
42
42
40
38
45
52
79
87
85
41
36
32
30
29
28
29
42
34
40
40
37
50
93
43
33
33
32
31
31
30
44
33
34
34
33
32
32
45
31
28
28
28
28
30
46
31
32
32
32
33
33
47
30
31
32
32
32
34
48
29
28
28
28
27
25
49
28
25
24
24
22
22
50
28
29
28
28
28
28
51
27
28
26
25
26
27
52
27
28
29
34
48
56
53
25
35
46
59
43
128
54
24
22
21
19
18
19
55
23
20
20
20
24
24
56
21
23
19
14
8
8
57
20
20
20
19
23
24
58
20
19
18
17
18
20
59
19
14
10
9
9
9
60
19
17
16
13
11
11
61
19
21
16
15
15
15
62
18
15
8
4
1
1
63
18
18
17
17
17
17
64
18
21
29
70
59
11
65
18
16
16
16
15
17
66
17
17
16
16
15
15
67
16
14
13
11
11
11
68
16
15
18
15
14
14
69
15
15
15
15
16
16
70
15
15
14
13
13
13
71
15
11
11
10
9
9
72
14
14
14
12
13
13
73
13
13
14
15
15
15
74
12
12
14
11
11
10
75
12
12
13
9
8
8
76
12
13
11
11
11
13
77
11
14
14
14
14
14
78
-
-
-
-
9
5
79
9
9
10
10
9
8
80
8
8
7
7
7
8
81
8
8
8
7
7
7
82
8
10
10
10
10
10
83
8
15
11
12
17
9
84
8
8
9
12
11
11
85
8
8
8
8
8
8
86
7
6
6
7
7
8
87
7
8
7
6
5
7
88
7
12
10
11
39
41
89
7
7
8
13
13
13
90
7
7
5
4
4
4
91
7
7
9
9
9
7
92
7
7
6
6
6
6
93
7
7
7
7
7
7
94
6
6
6
6
6
6
95
6
6
7
7
7
7
96
5
6
6
7
7
7
97
5
5
5
5
5
5
98
5
5
5
5
6
6
99
4
3
3
3
3
3
100
4
3
3
3
3
3
101
4
4
4
3
3
3
102
4
5
4
4
4
4
103
4
4
4
3
3
3
104
4
4
4
3
3
3
105
4
5
4
4
3
3
106
4
3
3
3
2
2
107
4
6
4
3
3
3
108
4
4
5
3
3
4
109
4
3
2
2
2
7
110
4
4
3
3
2
2
111
4
1
1
1
1
1
112
3
2
2
0
3
2
113
-
-
-
-
-
3
114
3
3
2
2
2
2
115
3
3
2
2
3
1
116
3
3
3
3
3
3
117
3
3
4
4
4
4
118
3
3
4
4
4
4
119
3
4
0
0
0
0
120
3
3
3
3
3
3
121
2
4
6
9
36
30
122
2
3
3
3
3
3
123
2
2
2
0
0
0
124
2
2
2
2
2
2
125
2
2
2
2
2
2
126
2
2
2
2
1
1
127
2
2
2
0
0
3
128
2
2
2
2
2
3
129
2
2
4
5
15
19
130
2
2
0
1
1
10
131
1
1
1
1
1
1
132
1
0
0
0
0
0
133
1
1
1
1
16
43
134
1
0
0
0
0
0
135
1
1
1
1
1
1
136
1
0
0
0
0
0
137
1
1
1
1
1
1
138
1
1
0
0
0
0
139
1
1
1
2
2
2
140
1
0
0
0
0
0
141
1
1
1
1
1
1
142
-
-
1
1
1
2
143
1
0
0
0
0
0
144
1
0
0
0
0
0
145
1
1
1
1
1
2
146
1
1
1
1
3
3
147
1
1
0
0
0
0
148
1
0
0
0
0
7
149
1
1
1
1
1
1
150
1
1
0
0
0
0
151
0
0
0
1
1
18
152
0
0
5
8
103
51
153
0
0
0
0
0
19
154
-
-
-
0
0
1
155
0
0
0
0
17
58
156
0
0
0
0
21
45
157
0
0
0
3
14
11
158
0
0
0
0
0
12
159
0
0
0
0
0
35
160
-
0
0
2
9
9
161
0
0
1
1
0
0
Methodology
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country has the most oil tankers?
China recorded the most oil tankers in 2026 with 1,799 vessels, followed by the Marshall Islands (1,019) and Indonesia (883).
How many countries are included in the dataset?
The dataset covers 196 countries and territories, and the table lists the 161 countries that record any oil tankers in the period.
What does this indicator measure?
It counts the oil tankers registered under each country's flag; according to UNCTAD, the fleet registration statistics cover all commercial ships of 100 gross tons and above.
Which country has the fewest oil tankers?
Several countries recorded a single oil tanker in 2026, including Albania, Bermuda, Cape Verde, and Lithuania, while 12 countries recorded no oil tankers at all, including Ethiopia, Ireland, Jordan, Samoa, and Syria.
Why is the latest year 2026?
The number of ships indicator in UNCTAD data reports values as of the beginning of each year, and 2026 is the latest available reference point in the source data.
Data Disclaimer: Projected data (future years) are estimates based on mathematical models. Actual values may differ. Learn about our methodology →
Sources
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Updated: 10.08.2026https://unctadstat.unctad.org/datacentre/dataviewer/US.MerchantFleet
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