The U.S. Department of State and the Department of the Treasury have imposed new sanctions on a Chinese oil refinery and several shipping companies for buying and storing Iranian crude oil from sanctioned vessels.
The Huaying Huizhou Daya Bay Petrochemical Terminal Storage, an oil terminal in China, has been designated for violating U.S. sanctions by purchasing and storing Iranian crude oil from vessels linked to the Foreign Terrorist Organization Ansarallah (Houthis) and the U.S.-designated Iranian Ministry of Defense of Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL). This marks the United States' first designation of a "teapot" oil refinery, private Chinese refineries that are primary purchasers of Iranian oil.
In addition, the Department of the Treasury has sanctioned 12 entities and one individual, identified eight vessels as blocked property, and imposed sanctions on China-based Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical Co., Ltd. for purchasing and refining hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Iranian crude oil. These vessels are part of Iran's "shadow fleet" of tankers that supply teapot refineries.
The sanctions are being imposed as part of President Trump's maximum pressure campaign to drive Iran's oil exports, including to China, to zero. China is the largest importer of Iranian oil, and the Iranian regime uses revenue from these sales to finance attacks on U.S. allies, support terrorism around the world, and pursue other destabilizing actions.
The Department of State's action today is pursuant to Executive Order 13846, which authorizes and reimposes certain sanctions with respect to Iran. The Department of the Treasury's action is taken under Executive Order 13902, which targets Iran's petroleum and petrochemical sectors. This marks the fourth round of sanctions targeting Iranian oil sales since President Trump issued National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 on February 4, 2025.
The U.S. will continue to hold both Iran and its sanctions-evading partners accountable as long as Iran attempts to generate oil revenues to fund its destabilizing activities.