Glencore to Lift Iranian Fuel Oil at Bandar Mahshahr

Anglo-Swiss commodity trader Glencore has chartered a ship to load Iranian fuel oil at the Iranian port of Bandar Mahshahr in a move that signals the return of legitimate Iranian crude and oil products to international markets.

The Greek-owned vessel, Green Warrior, arrived at the Iranian port of Bandar Mahshahr on February 3, on a fully fixed charter by Glencore and is set to load 80,000 tonnes of high-sulphur fuel oil bound for Singapore, according to Thomson Reuters ship tracking data as well as traders and shipbrokers with knowledge of the matter.

A Glencore spokesman declined to comment.

Despite the lifting of sanctions in mid-January, most international insurers are no closer to resolving concerns over remaining U.S. sanctions, limiting oil companies' ability to steal a jump on rivals in the race to benefit from Iran's return to oil markets.

"Most P&I Clubs are not yet ready to offer protection for Iran for various reasons. Re-insurance in the US being one of them," said one European-based shipbroker.

P&I clubs provide third-party liability insurance and pollution cover for vessels, consisting of marine insurers owned by shipping clients and reinsured internationally.

While the most popular P&I Clubs are not yet providing insurance coverage to vessels loading in Iran, "there are P&I Clubs out there that are more risk hungry and that's why we're starting to see the beginning of it," said a Singapore-based shipbroker.

By Roslan Khasawneh