Monday, February 3, 2025

Iranian Tanker Sought by US Heading Toward Greece

From The Houston Chronicle An Iranian supertanker with $130 million worth of light crude oil that the U.S. suspects is tied to a sanctioned organization left Gibraltar and was heading east into the Mediterranean Sea on Monday, with its next destination reported to be Greece. The Iran-flagged Adrian Darya 1, previously named Grace 1, set course for Kalamata, Greece, with

Gibraltar Releases Captured Iranian Oil Tanker, US Makes Immediate Request to Seize Vessel

From CNBC An Iranian oil tanker held in Gibraltar since early July has been officially released by local authorities, although it may not sail if a U.S. application to seize the vessel proves successful. On July 4, Gibraltar authorities with the help of the British Royal Marines, seized the Grace 1 oil tanker following suspicions it was delivering oil to

Panama Canal Will Not Block Venezuela Vessels Despite U.S. Sanctions

From Reuters The Panama Canal will continue authorizing vessels coming from Venezuela provided they present the necessary paperwork, the waterway’s chief said on Wednesday, suggesting a new round of U.S. sanctions on the South American nation should not make a difference to canal traffic. President Donald Trump’s administration last week issued an executive order freezing all Venezuelan government assets in

Petroleum exports from Russia to the U.S. are growing rapidly as the supplier takes advantage of lost deliveries from sanctions-hit Venezuela and supply cuts by OPEC members. - Oil & Gas 360

Iran Says it Expects Tanker Held by U.K. to Be Released Soon

From The Houston Chronicle Iran expects an oil tanker seized by the U.K. in the Strait of Gibraltar in July will be released soon, the semi-official Fars News agency reported Tuesday, a move that could help to ease concerns about the safety of shipping routes in the Middle East. “Official and unofficial documents have been exchanged to resolve the matter

UK Joins United States for Maritime Security Mission in Gulf

From Reuters Britain on Monday joined the United States in a maritime security mission in the Gulf to protect merchant vessels travelling through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran seized a British-flagged vessel. British officials stressed that there was no change to London’s policy on Iran but joining the United States is the most significant non-Brexit foreign policy move to

Centrica CEO to Step Down; Sell Oil and Gas Business

From The Houston Chronicle The top executive of British-owned Centrica, owner of Direct Energy, will be stepping down after what the company describes as an exceptionally challenging six months which included outages at its nuclear sites, pension deficits and low natural gas prices. The company announced on Tuesday that it is cutting the dividend for investors. Iain Conn, group chief

Britain Tells Iran: Release Ship to ‘Come Out of the Dark’

From Reuters Britain told Iran on Monday that if it wants to “come out of the dark” it must follow international rules and release a British-flagged oil tanker seized by its forces in the Gulf. Iranian commandos seized the Stena Impero near the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important waterway for oil shipments, on July 19. That was two

Iran Seizes Two More Tankers as Strait of Hormuz Tension Escalates

By Tyler Losier, Energy Reporter, Oil & Gas 360 British and Liberian-flagged vessels seized by Iran, who President Trump calls “nothing but trouble” Iran has seized two oil tankers – one British-flagged and one Liberian-flagged – in the Strait of Hormuz, following through on its threats to retaliate after one of its ships was seized by U.K. authorities off the