UPDATED 2019-01-03 Due to positive identification of tanker in Syria.
During November, an Iranian Suezmax tanker (capable of holding a million barrels) called the SINOPA had traversed the Suez Canal in the northbound direction and switched off its AIS transponder on November 7th, 2018. The signal re-appeared on the 13th as the vessel returned to the Suez Canal. We first expected this tanker to go to Turkey at the time as usual, but couldn’t find it anywhere there. For sake of context, we would like to point out that this happened during the week the unilateral US sanctions took effect on Iran. Now that we have more data (both visual and maritime) on this vessel, we have identified it as being the SINOPA.
Days later, the United States imposed additional sanctions on Iran for delivering oil to Syria.
Israel’s crude oil imports dropped substantially during November to only 168,840 barrels per day (5 million for the month) from 248,760 bpd in October as the variety of sources were slimmed down to only Russia, Azerbaijan and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of northern Iraq. During October, there were also Nigeria and the Republic of Congo, both of which are OPEC member states.
Syria November 2018 Crude Oil Imports in Barrels Per Day
| Source | Barrels / Day | Total Barrels | Percentage By Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iran | 32,395 | 971,862 | 100.00% |
| Total | 32,395 | 971,862 | 100.00% |
| Value ($58.71/barrel) | $1,901,910 | $57,057,314 |
Israel November 2018 Crude Oil Imports in Barrels Per Day
| Source | Barrels / Day | Total Barrels | Percentage By Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azerbaijan | 61,408 | 1,842,251 | 36.37% |
| Kurdistan Regional Government | 60,399 | 1,811,964 | 35.77% |
| Russia | 47,033 | 1,410,991 | 27.86% |
| Total | 168,840 | 5,065,206 | 100.00% |
| Value ($58.71/barrel) | $9,912,608 | $297,378,244 |
Satellite images captured by Planet Labs.