Chinese oil companies began supplying Iran with petrol in September, providing up to one-third of the country’s imports potentially undermining US efforts to choke the supply of fuel to the Middle Eastern state, the Financial TImes reported. Oil traders said that Chinese state-owned oil companies were selling the petrol through intermediaries, but the sales are still legal as fuel imports are currently not included in sanctions against the country. The sales come despite recent moves by international companies including BP and India’s Reliance to stop supplying Iran with fuel, highlighting the difficulties of implementing sanctions targeting Iran’s nuclear program. Sinopec and CNPC have also signed US$4 billion worth of contracts with the Iranian government to pump oil from the energy-rich country.
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