1. Going Dark
A common method to transport Iranian oil or North Korean coal with stealth is to turn off the AIS, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later
A common method to transport Iranian oil or North Korean coal with stealth is to turn off the AIS, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later
2. Ship-to-Ship Transfers
A method that often goes hand-in-hand with going dark. A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight.
A method that often goes hand-in-hand with going dark. A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight.
3. Fake Destinations
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload. Ships that intend to take cargoes from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free Qatar, Saudi Arabia or Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload. Ships that intend to take cargoes from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free Qatar, Saudi Arabia or Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them
4. Rebranded Barrels
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. Countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar specs. Oil from these deposits can be trucked to another port and documents forged to hide origin
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. Countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar specs. Oil from these deposits can be trucked to another port and documents forged to hide origin
5. Payment
The important thing is to avoid using SWIFT system, so an array of offshore companies (Cyprus, Belize) receive US dollars and buy other commodities cargo like corn or wheat to ship to the sanctioned country
The important thing is to avoid using SWIFT system, so an array of offshore companies (Cyprus, Belize) receive US dollars and buy other commodities cargo like corn or wheat to ship to the sanctioned country
6. This trade is not only between sanctioned countries like the recent Iran & Venezuela spat. This oil is everywhere, there are dozens of tankers floating right now with suspicious origin oil, looking for a buyer on the spot market. Buyer beware
