krogragg

Category: Iran

  • VLCC day rates rocket above half‑million dollars

    VLCC day rates rocket above half‑million dollars Amid soaring tanker rates, a US‑led naval coalition has warned shipping that stationary vessels and ships on predictable routes are “credible” targets for sabotage across the Middle East, after a tanker linked to the Stena‑Sonangol suezmax pool was struck off the Iraqi coast. The Combined Maritime Forces’ Joint…

  • 3,200 ships caught up in Hormuz paralysis

    3,200 ships caught up in Hormuz paralysis VLCC freight surged to extraordinary theoretical levels on Monday as the war between Iran and the US‑Israel coalition roiled shipping in the Persian Gulf, with some 3,200 vessels stuck in the region. The benchmark TD3C from the Middle East to China was quoted at $423,700 a day, up…

  • Houthis vow to resume attacks following Iranian strikes

    Houthis vow to resume attacks following Iranian strikes With the US and Israel attacking Iran on Saturday, Iranian allies, the Houthis from Yemen, have vowed to resume attacks on commercial shipping in and around the Red Sea, bringing to a close a four-month cessation of violence at sea.  Shipping organisation BIMCO suggested ships with business…

  • Denmark detains sanctioned boxship

    Denmark detains sanctioned boxship Denmark’s maritime authority on Thursday detained an Iran-flagged container vessel anchored in Danish waters after determining it was not properly registered. LSEG data identify the ship as Nora, which was initially sailing under a Comoros flag. The Danish authority said Comoros had informed it the vessel was not found in the…

  • US sanctions another nine vessels linked to Iran

    US sanctions another nine vessels linked to Iran Friday saw the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) slap sanctions on nine more shadow fleet vessels and their respective owners or management firms over their ties to Iran. “The Iranian regime is engaged in a ritual of economic self-immolation—a process that…

  • Houthis tease new strikes amid US carrier build‑up in the Gulf

    Houthis tease new strikes amid US carrier build‑up in the Gulf As a US carrier strike group makes its way to the Gulf, a familiar foe to commercial shipping has reared its head for the first time in months.  A video titled ‘Soon’ published overnight by the Houthis, carried below, suggests the Iranian-backed Yemeni military…

  • US targets sprawling Iranian shadow fleet network in latest sanctions drive

    US targets sprawling Iranian shadow fleet network in latest sanctions drive The United States has unveiled one of its most extensive crackdowns to date on the Iranian oil-ecosystem, blacklisting a web of front companies, intermediaries and tankers that Washington says bankroll Tehran’s armed forces through clandestine crude sales. The action, announced overnight by the US…

  • Hijacked tanker found in Iran’s familiar holding ground

    Hijacked tanker found in Iran’s familiar holding ground The Talara, a Marshall Islands-flagged product tanker, apprehended by the Iranian military on Friday has been tracked down. The vessel is moored in the Khuran Strait, north of Qeshm Island, a familiar location for vessels hijacked by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), according to TankerTrackers.com.  State…

  • US hits Iranian energy export network and Chinese import hub in sweeping sanctions move

    US hits Iranian energy export network and Chinese import hub in sweeping sanctions move The US has imposed sweeping sanctions on a vast network tied to Iran’s oil and gas exports, blacklisting more than 50 individuals and entities and identifying more than 30 vessels linked to shipments of sanctioned crude and LPG — including one…

  • Europe moves to snap back Iran sanctions

    Europe moves to snap back Iran sanctions Britain, France and Germany have triggered a 30-day process to reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran, a move that threatens to shake up tanker markets. The so-called snapback mechanism, launched on Thursday, would reinstate wide-ranging sanctions suspended under the 2015 nuclear accord, including restrictions on oil exports, financial…

  • Hackers sew lips on Iran’s merchant fleet again

    Hackers sew lips on Iran’s merchant fleet again For the second time in the space of five months, a hacker group is claiming it has knocked out communications on a swathe of the Iranian merchant fleet.  The hacker group called Lab Dookhtegan, which translates as Sewn Lips, told London-based TV channel Iran International it had…

  • Ukraine targets Caspian port in strike on Russian drone supply chain

    Ukraine targets Caspian port in strike on Russian drone supply chain Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces have struck the Russian port of Olya in the Astrakhan region, destroying a vessel loaded with components for Iranian-made Shahed drones and ammunition. The attack, carried out on August 14 in coordination with other elements of Ukraine’s Defense Forces, hit…

  • US Treasury unleashes largest Iran shipping sanctions since 2018

    US Treasury unleashes largest Iran shipping sanctions since 2018 In its most expansive sanctions package against Iran in nearly seven years, the US Treasury has imposed sweeping measures on over 100 individuals, companies, and vessels linked to Iranian maritime and sanctions-evasion network. The action, unveiled Wednesday, is aimed at dismantling what the US calls a…

  • US airstrikes on Iran spark memories of previous tanker wars

    US airstrikes on Iran spark memories of previous tanker wars Shipping stock prices surged in Asia today on the back of the fast-escalating geopolitical crisis in the Middle East, with Iranian politicians threatening to shut down the Strait of Hormuz after US airstrikes on key nuclear sites.  Iran’s parliament has voted to block the Strait…

  • Will Iran close the Strait of Hormuz?

    Will Iran close the Strait of Hormuz? The big question in international shipping today has been whether Iran’s responses to the U.S. Operation Midnight Hammer strikes on its nuclear facilities will include closing the Strait of Hormuz — the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, making it the primary route…

  • Freight market reacts to soaring Middle East tensions

    Freight market reacts to soaring Middle East tensions Tensions in the Middle East have reached a boiling point this week as senior US officials reportedly prepare for a potential military strike on Iran, a move that threatens to ignite a wider regional conflict. According to a Bloomberg report citing individuals familiar with the matter, the…

  • Oil spill detected from Tuesday’s tanker collision in the Gulf of Oman

    Oil spill detected from Tuesday’s tanker collision in the Gulf of Oman An oil spill is growing rapidly in the Gulf of Oman after Tuesday’s spectacular collision between a Frontline VLCC and a suezmax belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet.  The accident occurred at 1:14 am Dubai time on Wednesday between two tankers, the 23-year-old Adalynn…

  • Oil & gas price uptick and vessel rerouting as Israel-Iran conflict keeps markets on edge

    Oil & gas price uptick and vessel rerouting as Israel-Iran conflict keeps markets on edge A spike in crude oil prices and tweaks to ships’ regular routes are some of the key indicators of uncertainty enveloping energy and shipping markets in the wake of Israel’s attack on Iran, as both countries turn off their giant…

  • GPS jamming on the rise as Israel-Iran conflict enters fourth day

    GPS jamming on the rise as Israel-Iran conflict enters fourth day The conflict between Israel and Iran stretched into a fourth consecutive day on Monday, rattling global energy markets and placing the maritime industry on edge. While Israeli airstrikes have so far avoided directly targeting Iran’s crude oil infrastructure, a reported explosion at a natural…

  • Shipping on edge as Israel and Iran fight fire with fire

    Shipping on edge as Israel and Iran fight fire with fire Israel launched wide-scale strikes against Iran this morning, targeting nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders, stating that the operation will continue “as long as necessary”. Immediately thereafter, Iran vowed “severe punishment for Israel” and has sent more than 100 drones to attack…

  • Middle East shipping routes on alert amid rising US-Iran-Israel tensions

    Middle East shipping routes on alert amid rising US-Iran-Israel tensions A rare and urgent joint advisory issued by United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, Maritime Security Centre – Horn of Africa, and Joint Maritime Information Centre has set alarm bells ringing for ship operators passing through the Middle East. The advisory warns of an increased threat…

  • The floating dead: oversight lags behind the rise of zombie vessels

    The floating dead: oversight lags behind the rise of zombie vessels Maritime identity laundering and the rise of so-called zombie vessels have evolved from a niche tactic into a “systemic enabler of large-scale sanctions evasion” with global authorities unable to keep up, according to a new report from Kpler, a maritime analytics platform. “Zombie vessels…

  • Washington unveils another package of sanctions aimed at Iran’s oil shipments

    Washington unveils another package of sanctions aimed at Iran’s oil shipments The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has designated the teapot refinery Hebei Xinhai Chemical Group and three port terminal operators in Shandong Province for their role in purchasing or facilitating the delivery of hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth…

  • US issues further sanctions against Iran

    US issues further sanctions against Iran Yesterday, the US imposed sanctions on seven entities engaged in Iranian petroleum products and petrochemical products trade as well as identifying two vessels as blocked property.  The tankers Eloise and Olia managed by Vroom Marine Venture were the ones picked up for the latest sanctions as the US continues…

  • Iran port blast kills at least 18 and injures hundreds

    Iran port blast kills at least 18 and injures hundreds A massive explosion killed at least 18 people and left around 800 others injured near Iran’s biggest port, Bandar Abbas. The blast, which took place at Shahid Rajaee terminal on Saturday morning, damaged multiple buildings in the area and caused additional fires. Aerial footage showed…

  • Trump administration chases substandard flags in bid to thwart Iran’s shadow fleet

    Trump administration chases substandard flags in bid to thwart Iran’s shadow fleet The latest American sanctions aimed at Iran’s oil industry make specific warnings to shipping about the use of substandard shipping. The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) yesterday designated a China-based independent teapot refinery, Shandong Shengxing Chemical, for its…

  • US targets UAE-based Indian in latest Iranian sanctions

    US targets UAE-based Indian in latest Iranian sanctions The Trump administration’s so-called maximum pressure campaign on Iran has turned its attention to Jugwinder Singh Brar, an Indian national based in the United Arab Emirates, who owns the companies Prime Tankers and Glory International. The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)…

  • Hacker group claims to have knocked out comms on 116 Iranian vessels

    Hacker group claims to have knocked out comms on 116 Iranian vessels Lab Dookhtegan, a hacker group, has claimed this week it has disrupted the communication networks of 116 ships belonging to Iran’s top two shipping firms. “In an unprecedented move, we successfully disrupted the communication network of two Iranian companies that, among various terrorist…

  • Chinese teapot refinery included in latest round of American sanctions targeting Iranian oil

    Chinese teapot refinery included in latest round of American sanctions targeting Iranian oil The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has designated a so-called teapot oil refinery in Shandong, China and its chief executive officer for purchasing and refining hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil, including…

  • US sanctions tanker headed for demolition

    US sanctions tanker headed for demolition Donald Trump’s so-called ‘maximum pressure’ campaign against Iran has stepped up a gear with the latest targeted sanctions announced in Washington DC yesterday including a ship waiting to be scrapped off Bangladesh as well as tug boats that have serviced Iranian-linked vessels in the past. The Department of the…

  • US renews Serica’s North Sea field sanction exemption

    US renews Serica’s North Sea field sanction exemption UK-based upstream oil and gas player Serica Energy has secured an extension of a sanction waiver from the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for its field in the UK sector of the North Sea. The post US renews Serica’s North Sea field sanction exemption…

  • US issues further Iran sanctions

    US issues further Iran sanctions The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed sanctions on more than 30 persons and vessels in multiple jurisdictions for their role in brokering the sale and transportation of Iranian petroleum-related products, the latest in a series of measures the new Donald Trump administration…

  • Trump administration ups sanctions against Iranian shipping

    Trump administration ups sanctions against Iranian shipping Donald Trump has wasted little time in carrying out his vow to up pressure against Iran with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) yesterday slapping sanctions on more than a dozen people and firms that are accused of facilitating the shipment of millions of barrels of Iranian…

  • Iranian navy chases American ship in Persian Gulf

    Iranian navy chases American ship in Persian Gulf The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) is reporting a suspicious approach to a US-flagged roro vessel Liberty Power in the Persian Gulf near Iran.  The vessel’s master reported that the ship was approached by a small military craft around 6:30 am local time and it had…

  • Audit finds more than 80% of sanctioned ships have no confirmed insurance

    Audit finds more than 80% of sanctioned ships have no confirmed insurance The number of vessels hit by sanctions has surpassed 1,000 with data from S&P Global Market Intelligence showing that more 800 of these ships do not have confirmed insurance. Moreover, the average age of sanctioned ships – 21 years – is some eight…

  • Major Chinese port group bans tankers on OFAC’s sanctions list

    Major Chinese port group bans tankers on OFAC’s sanctions list Shandong Port Group has banned any tanker sanctioned by the US from calling at its ports.  The group oversees major ports on China’s northeast coast including Qingdao, Rizhao and Yantai, which are among the biggest destinations for sanctioned oil from Russia, Iran and Venezuela. Reuters…

  • Shadow VLCCs lined up for demolition

    Shadow VLCCs lined up for demolition Changes are afoot in the Iranian-linked VLCC fleet with just over six weeks until Donald Trump is sworn in as the 47th president of the US.  Splash reported on further sanctions aimed at Iran’s tanker fleet earlier this week, as well as news that China has started to ease…