The sanctions are against vessels and companies said to have transported millions of tonnes of illicit oil and petroleum products.

According to S&P Global data for 2025, the fleet associated with Iran represents approximately 20% of the total global shadow fleet (which includes approximately 1,400 ships serving Russia, Venezuela and Iran)

The US on Thursday said it had imposed sanctions on 29 vessels in Iran’s so-called “shadow fleet,” and more than 20 companies associated with it claiming that they export Iranian petroleum and petroleum products through “deceptive shipping practices”, Anadolu reports. In a statement, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said the vessels and their management firms were allegedly transporting hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian oil and petroleum products.

The statement explained

The statement identified Egyptian businessman Hatem Elsaid Farid Ibrahim Sakr and several companies operating in the UAE, India, Panama, and the Marshall Islands as being linked to the shipments.“Treasury will continue to deprive the regime of the petroleum revenue it uses to fund its military and weapons programs,” the statement quoted Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley as saying

 Iran’s “shadow fleet"

 The geographic spread reflected Iran’s extensive network of partners, the so-called “shadow fleet,” willing to use illegal tactics to smuggle petroleum. Smaller-scale refiners in China, known as teapots, reportedly buy some 90 percent of Iran’s exported oil. “Iran continues to funnel revenues from its petroleum trade toward the development of its nuclear program, proliferation of its ballistic missile and unmanned aerial vehicle technology, and sponsorship of its regional terrorist proxies, risking further destabilizing the region,” said Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley Smith

Serious and Shocking facts

It is noteworthy that Iran relies on a massive and complex fleet known as the Shadow or Ghost Fleet, which consists of state-owned tankers and others belonging to private networks operating in the shadows to circumvent international sanctions. Based on data from specialized research centers such as UANI , Vortexa Estimates vary depending on the monitoring body. The number of tankers involved in transporting Iranian oil is estimated at around 300 to 500 (including the fleet of the National Iranian Tanker Company - NITC) and foreign vessels operating within smuggling networks.

Iran depends primarily on very large crude carriers (VLCCs), each capable of carrying approximately one million barrels. Reports indicate that at least 47 VLCCs not subject to direct sanctions are currently operating in this sector.(UANI) has identified more than 500 tankers with a total capacity of 61 million tons (equivalent to more than 350 million barrels) dedicated to serving Iranian oil.

According to S&P Global data for 2025, the fleet associated with Iran represents approximately 20% of the total global shadow fleet (which includes approximately 1,400 ships serving Russia, Venezuela and Iran).At the end of this year, the amount of oil stored on floating tankers at sea reached record levels of approximately 52 million barrels, largely distributed in areas near Malaysia and Singapore, awaiting unloading.

Related : U.S. Coast Guard seizes Panama-registered Oil tanker moving sanctioned of Coast Venezuelan

The chemical shipped via 10 to 12 vessels to Bandar Abbas port

,On the other hand Last month ,Representatives Raja Krishnamoorthi and Joe Democratic members of the United States Congress Courtney sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, calling for a probe into Chinese firms' delivery of 2,000 tons of sodium perchlorate - a critical ingredient in making ballistic missile propellant - to Iran since late September in violation of UN sanctions The chemical shipped via 10 to 12 vessels to Bandar Abbas port, could fuel up to 500 mid-range missiles, accelerating Tehran's arsenal rebuild after a 12-day war with Israel in June, the congressmen said based on report previously appeared on CNN. However, the two lawmakers said that “April Treasury sanctions on Iranian and Chinese entities failed to halt the flow, as shipments continued unabated with another 1,000 tons delivered in June.””

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