WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Treasury on Thursday said it imposed sanctions on a United Arab Emirates-based shipping company for violating the $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian crude oil exports in its first such enforcement action this year.
The Treasury said in a statement that the Office of Foreign Assets Control designation sanctions were imposed on Hennesea Shipping Co Ltd, which it said was the beneficial owner of 18 mostly older tankers acquired in late 2022.
The Treasury said it previously identified one of the vessels, the HS Atlantica, as having transported Russian-origin crude oil priced above the $60 cap while using a U.S.-based provider of maritime services.
The G7-led price cap on Russian crude oil, imposed in December 2022, aims to reduce Russia’s revenues available for its war in Ukraine by allowing Western-supplied insurance and other services only on cargoes priced below $60 a barrel.
The action effectively blocks Hennesea Holdings from dollar-based transactions, placing the firm on the Specially Designated Nationals list.
(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)