US green-lights delivery and sale of Iranian oil at sea

WASHINGTON: The US Treasury on Friday (Mar 20) temporarily lifted sanctions on Iranian oil already loaded onto vessels, in Washington’s latest step to stem a supply crisis over the Middle East war.

The authorisation allows for the delivery and sale of Iranian crude oil and other petroleum products loaded onto ships before Mar 20, and will last through Apr 19, the Treasury said in a statement.

The move by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had said Thursday was under consideration, follows a similar lifting of sanctions on Russian oil at sea.

Iran’s de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 per cent of the world’s oil and gas normally flows, and the numerous attacks on energy infrastructure in the Middle East, have sent crude oil prices soaring.

Bessent described the move in a statement Friday as a narrowly tailored, short-term authorisation that follows President Donald Trump’s intention to “maximise the flow of energy to the world” and ensure market stability.

“At present, sanctioned Iranian oil is being hoarded by China on the cheap,” Bessent said in a statement.

“By temporarily unlocking this existing supply for the world, the United States will quickly bring approximately 140 million barrels of oil to global markets, expanding the amount of worldwide energy and helping to relieve the temporary pressures on supply caused by Iran.”