The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced a new round of sanctions against Iran, targeting ships accused of selling Iranian oil to fund the country’s ballistic missile programme (OFAC press release 25/02/2026).
OFAC has intensified its pressure on the Iranian shadow fleet, designating 12 vessels and their respective owners or operators, which "collectively transported hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products", according to the statement. The new sanctions will freeze the assets of the targeted firms and individuals within the United States and will make it largely illegal for US citizens to engage in financial transactions with them.
Iran’s crude oil exports have risen sharply since 2020, following production trends (70 Mt in 2024). Exports had previously declined by 49% between 2011 and 2015 after the first wave of international sanctions, before surging by 86% in 2016 to 105 Mt when those sanctions were lifted. While exports represented around 60% of total oil production between 2000 and 2011, their share dropped to 40–50% in 2011–2018 and has remained around 30–40% since 2019 (Enerdata Global Energy Research).