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US Sanctions Indian Firms Over Iran Energy Trade Links



The United States has imposed sanctions on multiple India based companies and nationals, alleging their involvement in the facilitation of Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products exports, a move designed to cut off funding for what it terms Tehran's "malign activity." This latest action targets a global network, with entities from India and other nations like China and the UAE facing restrictive measures.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the U.S. Department of State announced a coordinated series of designations against individuals, entities, and vessels. According to a press release from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the sanctions aim to "degrade Iran's cash flow by dismantling key elements of Iran's energy export machine." The department stated that the targeted "actors have collectively enabled the export of billions of dollars' worth of petroleum and petroleum products, providing critical revenue to the Iranian regime and its support for terrorist groups that threaten the United States."

Among the Indian entities named by the U.S. Department of State are several petrochemical trading companies, including CJ Shah & Co, Chemovick Private Limited, BK Sales Corporation, Mody Chem, Paarichem Resources LLP, Indisol Marketing Private Limited, Haresh Petrochem Private Limited, and Shiv Texchem Limited. These firms are accused of having cumulatively imported hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Iranian origin petrochemicals, which are under U.S. sanctions. For example, according to the U.S. Department of State, Chemovick is alleged to have imported over $7 million of Iranian-origin petrochemical products, while Indisol Marketing was involved in approximately $74 million in shipments.

The sanctions also hit eight Indian nationals, including directors of some of the listed companies, as well as individuals allegedly involved in shipping Iranian liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). The U.S. Department of the Treasury identified individuals such as Varun Pula, Iyappan Raja, and Soniya Shrestha in connection with vessels transporting Iranian LPG to countries like China and Pakistan. The Treasury Department emphasized the immediate implication of these sanctions: "All property and interests in property of the designated or blocked persons... that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC."

While the U.S. government maintains that these measures are critical to applying "maximum economic pressure" on Iran, the Indian government has historically responded to similar actions by underscoring its national legal framework. Although there has been no immediate, specific response from the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) regarding this latest round of sanctions, in the past, when Indian firms faced U.S. sanctions over other trade-related issues, the MEA has stated that its "understanding is that the sanctioned transactions and companies are not in violation of Indian laws," as per earlier official statements. The Indian government has previously conveyed to the U.S. that India maintains a "robust legal and regulatory framework" on strategic trade and is an active participant in key multilateral non-proliferation export control regimes.

This latest action underscores the ongoing challenge faced by countries like India in navigating the complex landscape of unilateral U.S. sanctions, particularly concerning energy and petrochemical trade with Iran.


See the article on the US sanctions on UAE firms on Iran-Sri Lanka petrochemical deals.


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