What About Sanctions On Oil Exports?

U.S. Media: Iran Transfers Crude Oil to Third Party Ships, And the Actual Export Volume Is Higher Than the United States Expects.

Despite tough US sanctions, Iran continues to export more than 600,000 barrels of oil a day, more than double the amount predicted in a recent US Congressional report, according to NBC.

NBC's report was based on data from TankerTrackers.com, an analytics company that tracks oil exports. TankerTrackers.com cited the case of the Indian tanker, the Gissel, which left Pakistan in April and appeared to have embarked on a standard journey in the Persian Gulf. Tracking data at the time showed the ship turned around near the Strait of Hormuz and came to a stop in the Gulf of Oman.

Satellite images, however, showed that the ship was not in the marked position. TankerTrackers used satellite images to find the Gissel off the coast of Lavan island, Iran, more than 100 miles from where it was spotted.

Off the coast of Lavan, the Gissel encountered an Iranian oil tanker, which transferred about a million barrels of crude oil to the Gissel. The Gissel then continued to carry oil to China.

TankerTrackers has found that Iran has repeatedly used similar techniques to move and export millions of barrels of oil and get around U.S. sanctions.

A recent congressional report estimated that Iran's oil exports have dropped 90 percent since 2018, from 2.5 million barrels a day to 227,000 barrels a day, NBC News reported. Exports fell by about 76 percent, according to TankerTrackers.

Iran's oil production has halved to about 2 million barrels a day, the report said. But Iran says it intends to continue developing its oil industry despite the sanctions.