Page 11 - DMEA Week 12 2020

DMEA PETROCHEMICALS DMEA
US ratchets up restrictions on Iranian petrochemicals
IRAN
Fuel and petrochemical exports provide an economic lifeline to Tehran.
THE US government has slapped sanctions on five companies it claims have ties to petrochem- ical and oil purchases from Iran, bringing the number of entities targeted in the last few days to 12.
The companies in question are Petro Grand FZE, Alphabet International DMCC, Swissol Trade DMCC, Alam Althrwa General Trading and Alwaneo, all of which are based in the UAE.
Washington’s “maximum pressure” policy against Tehran has largely focused on curbing Iranian oil exports, while shipments of pet- rochemicals, fuel oil and other downstream products have been somewhat overlooked. But the US government now wants to curtail these supplies as well, denying Iran a key economic lifeline.
The latest five firms were blacklisted by the US Treasury Department’s sanctions enforce- ment arm, the Office of Foreign Assets Con- trol (OFAC), on March 19. The companies collectively purchased hundreds of thousands of tonnes of petrochemicals products from Iranian national oil company NIOC last year, the office claimed.
Proceeds from these sales had been used by Iran to support “malign activities throughout the Middle East, including the support for terrorist groups,” OFA said in a statement. At least three of the blacklisted firms “falsified documents to conceal the Iranian origin” of the products they obtained.
A day earlier the OFAC announced it would
impose sanctions on seven other companies which it said were involved in the Iranian pet- rochemicals trade – three based in mainland China, three in Hong Kong and one in South Africa. Those companies were Hong Kong-based Mcfly Plastic Hk, Saturn Oasis and Sea Charm- ing Shipping Company; Chinese firms Dalian Golden Sun Import & Export, Tianyi Interna- tional (Dalian) and Aoxing Ship Management (Shanghai) and South Africa’s SPI International Proprietary.
Washington targeted four other Irani- an-linked petrochemical firms in January, including Hong Kong’s Triliance Petrochemical, a key supplier of methanol to China.
Iran is running out of options for exporting its petrochemicals, not just because of increas- ing US pressure but also due to border restric- tions imposed in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Turkey, which has also been a key market for Iranian polymers, shut its borders with Iran in February.
Iran is the fourth-worst hit country by the coronavirus, having recorded 29,406 cases and 2,234 deaths. Tehran has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for $5bn in emergency aid to help combat the virus’ spread.
“The Trump Administration will continue to target and isolate those who support the Iranian regime and remains committed to facilitating humanitarian trade and assistance in support of the Iranian people,” US Treasury Secretary Ste- ven Mnuchin said in a statement last week.™
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