A tanker that falls under new U.S. sanctions is unloading Russian oil at a port managed by Shandong Port Group in eastern China, according to shipping data from LSEG Eikon on Thursday.
This marks the first shipment since the sanctions were announced last week to arrive at a port in Shandong province, home to many independent Chinese refineries that have been major buyers of Russian crude.
Industry experts will be closely monitoring the discharge to assess how strictly the new sanctions will be enforced.
The sanctions allow for a grace period, permitting shipments loaded before Jan. 10 and unloaded by March 12 to bypass the restrictions. Despite this, some shipments have been delayed as traders evaluate the risks involved.
Shandong Port Group did not respond to requests for comment after regular office hours.
The Panama-flagged tanker, Mermar, docked at Longkou port in Yantai on Wednesday after having been anchored since Saturday, according to LSEG data.
The tanker, an Aframax-sized vessel, was carrying 80,000 metric tons (600,000 barrels) of Russian ESPO Blend crude, which was loaded on Jan. 6 from Kozmino port on Russia’s east coast.
The Mermar is among the 183 vessels blacklisted by the Biden administration, a move that disrupted Russia’s oil shipments to China and India and also reduced the availability of tankers.
The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control cited the Mermar’s previous port call at a Russian facility where oil prices have been consistently above the $60 price cap set by Western nations to limit Russia’s oil revenue.
The tanker is part of Russia’s “shadow fleet,” used to circumvent sanctions. Its owner, Merluza Group, has also been sanctioned under the new measures.
Hong Kong-based Ocean Anemone Shipmanagement manages the vessel, which is insured by Russia’s Balance Insurance, according to shipping data reviewed by Reuters. Efforts to reach Ocean Anemone Shipmanagement for comment were unsuccessful. Balance Insurance did not immediately respond to Reuters’ inquiries.
Before the sanctions were announced, Shandong Port Group had already barred U.S.-sanctioned tankers from docking at its ports in the province.
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