Iran has released the seized oil cargo from a Greek-owned, Marshall Islands-flagged tanker that it seized in the Gulf of Oman earlier this year, according to a shipping source who spoke to Reuters on Thursday.
The tanker, M/T St. Nikolas, remains in Iranian custody, the source added. At the time of its seizure, the vessel was carrying 1 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil destined for Turkey.
“The cargo was released earlier this week after negotiations,” the source said.
Turkish refiner Tupras confirmed in a statement that the St. Nikolas was holding approximately 1 million barrels of crude oil purchased from the Iraqi state oil company SOMO.
“The entire cargo was recovered through a ship-to-ship transfer conducted between July 23-25, 2024. The crude oil is now en route to the refinery and is expected to arrive in September,” Tupras stated.
The cargo was transferred onto the Turkey-flagged tanker T. Semahat via a ship-to-ship transfer near Iran’s Larak Island, said Claire Jungman, chief of staff at the U.S. advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran, which monitors Iran-related tanker traffic using satellite data.
T. Semahat’s Turkey-based operator, Ditas, is majority-owned by Tupras.
According to LSEG shipping data, the vessel’s destination was the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, and it was sailing away from Iran on Thursday.
Iran seized the St. Nikolas in January, reportedly in retaliation for the U.S. confiscation of the same vessel and its oil last year, Iranian state media reported at the time.
Iran’s foreign and oil ministries were not immediately available for comment.
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