Iran’s Shadow Oil Trade Endures Near Singapore Despite War
Iran‘s shadow oil trade endures near Singapore despite war | Nation | swiowanewssource.com
Near Singapore, thousands of miles from the Strait of Hormuz, ship-to-ship transfers of Iranian oil have continued during the Middle East war, helping Tehran evade sanctions and maintain trade with China.
The ageing vessels that make up Iran‘s “ghost fleet” operate clandestinely, exploiting opaque ownership structures, false flags, a lack of insurance, and manipulation of GPS data to keep a low profile. Ship-to-ship (STS) transfers on the high seas allow them to “launder” cargoes, disguising their origin.
Strategic Hub Emerges
An area off Malaysia and Singapore, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) southeast of the Malay Peninsula, has emerged as a strategic hub for moving Iranian crude. Each week, dozens of transfers between tankers can be seen from the air, an AFP analysis of satellite imagery found.
“It’s really the main hub,” said Amir Handjani of the US-based Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. He described the STS situation there as “total anarchy”.
Cargoes Headed to China
Iranian tankers leave the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz having loaded with crude, usually at Iran‘s strategic Kharg Island, according to analysis of several maritime tracking platforms. They then skirt the Indian subcontinent and pass through the Strait of Malacca to Singapore on a two- to three-week journey, before anchoring and waiting for another tanker to take their cargo.
Since March 1, at least 37 Iran-linked tankers have transferred their cargo at sea in the area, amounting to at least 62.3 million barrels of crude, according to data from maritime tracking firm Kpler analysed by AFP. When specified, the final destinations of these cargoes were ports in China’s northern provinces of Shandong, Liaoning, and Jiangsu.
Recent Transfers
Most of the vessels left the Gulf before war broke out on February 28, but at least six Iranian tankers — among 26 that have crossed the Strait of Hormuz during the conflict — have transferred their cargoes (totalling 10 million barrels) in recent weeks near Singapore. The Silvia 1 loaded one million barrels at Kharg in February, passed through the Strait of Hormuz on March 3, arrived in the Singapore area on March 21, and transferred its cargo around March 25 to the Yug.
The Yug then took on the cargo of a second Iranian tanker, the Seastar III, on April 3. The destination of the Yug is unknown, but the Comoros-flagged tanker is accustomed to STS transfers and generally delivers its cargoes to ports in Shandong, according to data compiled by Kpler and the NGO Global Fishing Watch.
Oil Stored at Sea
Two other cargoes that left the Gulf on the Hilda I and the Amber were transferred to other tankers near Singapore at the end of March, and are expected to arrive at the ports of Yantai (Shandong) and Lianyungang (Jiangsu) on Thursday and Friday.
Original Article: Iran’s shadow oil trade endures near Singapore despite war | Nation | swiowanewssource.com — Swiowanewssource