Iranian oil pumped from Pegas following US request
Oil is being pumped from a Russian-flagged tanker that has been docked off southern Evia since April and being transferred to another tanker since Tuesday, at the request of US authorities.
A court in Halkida approved the transfer of oil from its tanks to two ships leased by the US.
The Pegas (renamed Lana in March) sailed to the Gulf of Karystos on April 14 from Marmaris, Turkey, with over 100,000 tons of oil. It was initially impounded on the grounds that it belonged to Promsvyazbank, a Russian bank subject to EU financial sanctions. The decision was later revoked after it emerged the ship had been transferred to Russian-based Transmorflot, which is not among the sanctioned companies.
It remained in Karystos as it had been on a US blacklist for transporting Iranian oil since 2021. On April 20, the US Department of Justice, citing a bilateral legal agreement, requested the seizure of its cargo.
