US sanctions 50 entities, including Indian firms, over Iran oil trade

The US Treasury has sanctioned over 50 individuals, companies, and vessels, including Indian firms, for facilitating Iranian oil and LPG exports to China, Pakistan, and other countries

As part of its latest effort to choke Iran’s income from energy trading, the US Department of the Treasury on Thursday announced sanctions on more than 50 individuals, companies, and vessels involved in the export of Iranian crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

 

Some of the sanctioned entities are reportedly linked to Indian nationals.

 

“These 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 US,” the Treasury Department said in a statement.

 

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said his department is degrading Iran’s cash flow by dismantling key elements of the country’s energy export network.

 

 

“Under President Donald Trump, this administration is disrupting the regime’s ability to fund terrorist groups that threaten the US,” he said.

 

Indians under scrutiny

 

The department alleged that Marshall Islands-based Bertha Shipping, owned by Indian national Varun Pula, operates the Comoros-flagged vessel PAMIR, which has transported nearly four million barrels of Iranian LPG to China since July 2024.

 

It further claimed that Evie Lines Inc, owned by Indian national Iyappan Raja, manages the Panama-flagged SAPPHIRE GAS and has reportedly moved over one million barrels of Iranian LPG to China since April 2025.

 

It added that India-based Vega Star Ship Management Pvt Ltd, owned by Indian national Soniya Shrestha, manages the Comoros-flagged NEPTA, which has allegedly transported Iranian-origin LPG to Pakistan since January 2025.

 

These are not the first Indian firms to be sanctioned by the US for alleged involvement in Iranian trade. Earlier this year, the US government sanctioned six Indian companies for allegedly dealing in Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products.

 

Part of broader US pressure campaign

 

The sanctions form part of Washington’s broader effort to pressure Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical sector following the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) in 2018.

 

While India officially halted crude imports from Iran after 2019, small-scale indirect trade via intermediaries has reportedly continued.

 

The newly announced sanctions also target firms and vessels in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Hong Kong, Panama, China, and the Marshall Islands.