US tightens sanctions against Iran's shadow oil fleet
The US Treasury Department has announced a large-scale increase in pressure on Iran's so-called shadow fleet, which is used to illegally export oil and oil products. The sanctions targeted 29 vessels and the companies that manage them, as well as Egyptian businessman Hatem Elsaid Farid Ibrahim Sakr, who is linked to at least seven tankers. This is stated in the official report of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department, according to The Public.
According to the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, these vessels have transported hundreds of millions of dollars of Iranian oil, fuel oil, bitumen, petrochemical raw materials and condensate in recent years, mainly to Asian countries. Some of them transported hundreds of thousands and even millions of barrels of fuel in 2025.
The Ministry of Finance noted that since Donald Trump's return to the US presidency, more than 180 vessels involved in the transportation of Iranian oil have already been sanctioned. This has significantly increased costs for exporters and reduced Tehran's profit from each barrel sold.
The new restrictions are part of an executive order targeting Iran's oil and petrochemical sectors and are part of a policy of maximum economic pressure. According to the US side, the regime uses oil revenues to finance military programmes and weapons development.
The sanctions provide for the freezing of all assets of sanctioned individuals and companies in the United States, as well as a ban on any transactions with them for American citizens and financial institutions. Violation of the sanctions regime may result in civil or criminal liability.
