Iran Stashing Unsold Oil In Derelict Tanks

Iran is utilizing a 'shadow fleet' of tankers with falsified identities and secret maritime transfers to sell oil and bypass Washington's sanctions. Last night, strikes resulted in at least five deaths and sixty injuries, primarily in the country's center. The United States has authorized Venezuela to pay legal fees for Nicolas Maduro and his wife, reversing a previous stance due to international sanctions. The Maduro couple was detained in New York after being apprehended in Caracas earlier in January, facing four charges. These vessels reportedly hide their origin to bypass restrictions while operating in different seas. The fleet includes tankers using Panama registry to facilitate these movements, according to the report. The Gulf currently holds several large tankers with a combined capacity of more than 15 million barrels. This practice could lead to long-term production losses, according to the report. Iran is reportedly storing quantities of unsold crude oil in abandoned storage tanks to avoid a total production halt. The Wall Street Journal reports that Iran is seeking new storage methods to manage these surpluses. Ship tracking data indicates the use of a 30-year-old supertanker with a capacity of up to two million barrels to facilitate these movements. The move is seen as an attempt to buy time amidst global competition for oil resources.