Wright says US is authorizing sanctioned tanker sales amid high fuel prices
The administration is working with investors to buy and refurbish blacklisted vessels for non-sanctioned oil, though the plan’s potential scale and price impact remain uncertain.
The Lead
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said October 19 that the Trump administration is authorizing sales of sanctioned oil tankers so investors can refurbish them and use them to carry non-sanctioned crude, as Americans face elevated diesel and gasoline prices.
Key Facts
- EIA data for October 19 put US regular gasoline at $4.284 a gallon, down 4.7 cents from the previous week, while on-highway diesel rose 9.7 cents to $6.276.
- Wright did not identify potential investors or detail the approval and sanctions-removal process.
- Industry analysts cited vessel age, existing contracts, insurance restrictions and high freight earnings as barriers to bringing ships into mainstream trade.
Article Body
Wright told Bloomberg at a Citadel Securities event in New York that the government was working with investors seeking to acquire idled, sanctioned vessels. Under the concept he described, buyers would refurbish the ships before using them in lawful trades; the vessels would no longer transport sanctioned oil.
The initiative comes amid a tight US diesel market. The Energy Information Administration said September retail diesel averaged $6.29 a gallon and forecast prices would remain above $6 during October, reflecting higher crude costs, constrained inventories and elevated refining margins. Its October outlook expected prices to decline gradually, not immediately.
The tanker proposal may add shipping capacity, but that outcome is not established. Analysts told Bloomberg that many eligible vessels are old, contractually committed or subject to separate European and British restrictions, while high freight rates reduce owners’ incentive to sell. How many tankers can complete sanctions, compliance, refurbishment and insurance reviews and enter mainstream service?
What to Watch
The decisive signal will be the number of vessels formally cleared from sanctions and returned to insured, mainstream service—not the overall size of the dark fleet or the number of proposed transactions.
Sources & Notes
- Bloomberg: US Allows Dark-Fleet Tankers to Shed Sanctions, Wright Says
- U.S. Energy Information Administration: Weekly Retail Gasoline and Diesel Prices
- U.S. Energy Information Administration: October 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook
- U.S. Department of Energy: Chris Wright
- Energy Secretary Wright on Diesel Shortage, Gas Prices, Oil Shipping