PB Tankers been removed from the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Asset Control's list of blocked persons and property after the Italian shipowner agreed to terminate its charter with Cuba's state oil company.
According to OFAC, one of PB Tankers six ships, the 51,062-dwt Silver Point (built 2001) had a charter to carry oil between Cuba and Venezuela, in violation of US sanctions.
Once the charter was ended, the agency said it removed the company, the ship and four other takers — the108,152-dwt Alba Marina (built 1999); 51,922-dwt Ice Point (built 2007); 51,004-dwt Gold Point (built 2011); 50,922-dwt Indian Point (built 2008); and 50,922-dwt Iron Point (built 2008) — from its blocked persons and property list.
The entities were added to the list, known as the SDN list or "specially designated nationals," in April. It prevents included entities from accessing US markets.
PB Tankers resolved the issue quickly, thanks to "both their history of compliance and their compliance commitments going forward", said Blank Rome attorney Matthew Thomas who represented the company alongside attorneys from Hill Dickinson in London.
After being sanctioned, the company said it was "shocked and concerned" about the listing and that they would be taking "immediate steps to ensure that both are delisted as a matter of urgency."
"PB Tankers does not have any ships in Venezuela, nor will be trading into or out of Venezuela," the company said in April.
The company also alleged that it was never formally informed it had been added to the SDN list and only found out from media reports.
