Japan oil wholesalers use ship-to-ship transfers to receive Middle East crude
Iran was
About half the country’s crude from region arrives via foreign operators for hefty fee
A Taiyo Oil tanker that arrived in Japan in March, having taken on Middle Eastern oil off the coast of Malaysia. (Photo obtained by Nikkei)
HIROMI SATO, YUKI KESHIBA and MASASHI IJICHI
TOKYO — Roughly half the tankers headed to Japan carrying Middle Eastern crude oil between March and May had obtained the oil using the unusual method of ship-to-ship transfers off the coasts of Malaysia and India, a Nikkei analysis has found.
