The United States has implemented measures to restrict Venezuela's oil exports, prompting Venezuela to utilize a fleet of vessels, often referred to as "ghost ships," to bypass these sanctions. On December 16, President Donald Trump announced a naval blockade targeting sanctioned oil tankers entering and exiting Venezuela. This action followed the US seizure of an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast on December 10, believed to be part of these covert operations.
Sanctions and Oil Exports
US sanctions against Venezuela's state-run oil company, PDVSA, initiated in 2019, have impacted the country's oil export capabilities. In 2019, Venezuelan crude exports decreased from approximately 1.1 million barrels per day in January to about 495,000 barrels per day by year-end. Despite ongoing sanctions, Reuters reported that Venezuela's oil exports reached around 920,000 barrels per day in November, indicating a partial recovery facilitated by the use of "ghost ships." This figure remains below Venezuela's peak oil export level of 3 million barrels per day in 1998.
Global Phenomenon of Ghost Fleets
The use of "ghost fleets" is not exclusive to Venezuela. Financial intelligence firm S&P Global estimates that 20% of the global oil tanker fleet is involved in transporting oil from sanctioned nations. This includes:
- 10% exclusively carrying Venezuelan oil.
- 20% transporting Iranian oil.
- 50% dedicated to Russian oil.
- The remaining 20% are not country-specific and may transport oil from multiple sanctioned countries.
Sanctions aim to deter entities from purchasing oil from targeted nations. Sanctioned countries typically offer oil at discounted rates to incentivize buyers, who in turn employ methods to disguise the oil's origin.
Evasion Tactics
"Ghost ships" employ various strategies to evade detection and sanctions:
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Frequent Identity Changes: Vessels frequently alter their names or flags, sometimes multiple times within a month. For example, the tanker "The Skipper," seized by the US, had previously been known as "Adisa" and "Toyo." These vessels are often older, exceeding the typical 15-year service life before major shipping companies dispose of them.
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"Zombie Ships": This tactic involves vessels using the unique registration numbers of scrapped ships assigned by the International Maritime Organization. An example cited is the "Varada," which arrived in Malaysian waters displaying the flag of the Comoros, a common practice for ships seeking to avoid detection, despite the original "Varada" having been scrapped in 2017.
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Transshipment: Oil is transferred in international waters from covert tankers to legally compliant vessels flying different flags. These compliant vessels then deliver the oil to its destination, presenting it as originating from an unsanctioned country. This method was observed with Venezuelan oil exports to China during an earlier period of tightened sanctions.
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Automatic Identification System (AIS) Disabling and Spoofing: Tankers may disable their AIS, which transmits crucial data like name, flag, position, speed, and route, to conceal their identity and location. Additionally, "spoofing" involves transmitting false AIS signals to misrepresent a vessel's position, as was reportedly the case with "The Skipper."