From Bloomberg Iran will close the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway vital for global oil shipments, if the country is prevented from using it, a senior military official said on Monday in what appears to be a response to the U.S. plan to end waivers on Iranian oil exports. “If we are prevented from using it, we will close it,”
From Reuters Sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry have made winners out of Gulf of Mexico offshore heavyweights Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc as U.S. refiners in need of substitutes are scooping up oil produced in the region. The two major oil companies produce notable amounts of crude oil that refiners have settled on as the immediate replacement for
From Reuters Iran’s oil exports have dropped in March to their lowest daily level this year, according to tanker data and industry sources, even before Washington formally requires importing countries to reduce purchases to avoid infringing U.S. sanctions. Shipments are averaging between 1.0 and 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) so far this month, according to Refinitiv Eikon data and
State Department issues Venezuela travel advisory
Move cuts off Venezuela’s main cash source The U.S. government announced sanctions on Venezuela’s PDVSA today, marking a major increase in the administration’s pressure campaign against Maduro’s regime. While the U.S. has sanctioned many individuals involved in Venezuela’s government, it has historically been reluctant to directly sanction PDVSA. This reluctance is largely because, despite the diplomatic hostility between the two
From Reuters U.S. refiners are bidding up prices for scarce types of crude oil needed for their most sophisticated plants as the United States reconsiders harsher sanctions on Venezuela that could further reduce imports of the country’s oil. Trump administration officials in recent days met with U.S. oil company executives to lay out potential actions in response to the Jan.
From Bloomberg U.S. balancing security and economic interests with sanctions The U.S. plans to grant no new waivers to buyers of Iranian oil as it intensifies efforts to eliminate the Middle Eastern producer’s exports of crude, a senior official said. U.S. sanctions have so far cut Iran’s exports to about 1 million barrels a day from a level of 2.7
From Reuters India’s oil imports from Iran fell by 41 percent in December to 302,000 barrels per day oil (bpd), ship tracking data reviewed by Reuters showed, as pressure from U.S. sanctions took effect. The United States introduced tough sanctions aimed at crippling Iran’s oil revenue-dependent economy in November but gave a six-month waiver to eight nations, including India, which
From Reuters All countries that were granted waivers from the United States to continue buying a certain amount of Iranian oil imports are complying with U.S. sanctions, a senior Iranian energy official said, noting that Tehran was hopeful to find new buyers. The United States withdrew from a nuclear deal with Iran last year and snapped sanctions in place to
From Middle East Eye Agency Iraq’s foreign minister has said that his country is “not obliged” to abide by sanctions imposed by the US against Iran and would be pursuing options to continue trade. On 20 December, the US granted Baghdad a 90-day extension to a waiver on abiding by the sanctions that were reimposed on the Islamic republic in
All U.S. sanctions on Iran that were lifted or waived as part of the Iran nuclear deal were re-imposed effective November 5, 2018. Washington, D.C.-based law firm Akin Gump has released a lengthy analysis and description of the ins and outs relating to the return of Iran sanctions to global trade in oil and other goods. The NDAA 2012 provides
On May 21, 2018 the United States president signed an executive order prohibiting certain transactions with the government of Venezuela. The order restricts transactions involving debt owed to the Venezuelan government. According to law firm Akin Gump, the new prohibitions target three categories of transactions: The purchase of any debt owed to the government of Venezuela, including accounts receivable Any debt owed to the
