Cosco Shipping Energy Transportation (CSET) has denied one of its main subsidiaries is the owner of CCPC Voyager (built 2004), an MR tanker suspected to have carried Iranian crude in sanctioned trade.
“Cosco Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Co is not the owner of the CCPC Voyager,” a company statement said.
“And the company has not made...ship-to-ship transfers with the two VLCCs CCPC Vanguard and VLCC Pacific Challenger ever.”
The statement came after a Windward analysis suggested the CCPC Voyager had made two STS transfers in Malaysia with the 311,189-dwt CCPC Vanguard (built 1998) and one in China with the 281,501-dwt Pacific Challenger (built 2001) since June.
Clarksons has listed Cosco Dalian as the owner of the CCPC Voyager while VesselsValue data shows the two VLCCs are owned by Kunlun Shipping.
Cosco Dalian was put on Washington’s specially designated nationals list on 25 September along with Cosco Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Seaman & Ship Management, Kunlun and three other Chinese firms for allegedly violating Iran-related sanctions.
The shipmanagement firm had been a subsidiary of Cosco Dalian before being sold to Cosco Shipping Investment Dalian earlier this year.
All the Cosco companies are ultimately controlled by China Cosco Shipping, the country’s largest state-owned shipping conglomerate.
Citing unnamed sources, Bloomberg reported that Chinese government officials planned to ask the US to lift sanctions on Cosco Dalian and the shipmanagement unit during this week’s trade talks.
While China has remained the top buyer of Iranian crude and LPG, industry observers have been surprised by the Cosco units’ alleged involvement.
With many subsidiaries listed in Shanghai and Hong Kong, Cosco Shipping has large exposure to international capital markets. Vessel-tracking databases have shown no direct liftings by Cosco tankers in Iran since May.
