Freight
Overview
Oil, gas and dry cargoes are being shipped all over the world every day. With seaborne transportation comes exposure to shipping costs. Be it via direct cost or through the prices of feedstocks or finished products, a freight factor is always there. Highly sensitive to market shifts, geopolitics and regulations, freight is a complex and volatile part of every trade.
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Argus Freight consists of three dedicated services, covering trade flows for tankers, dry bulk and gas markets. Each service provides daily freight indexes, industry-specific news, market analysis and exclusive content. This enables you to connect the dots between commodity prices and shipping costs, giving you a complete view of the supply chain.
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More than 30 sanctioned tankers in Venezuela
More than 30 sanctioned tankers in Venezuela
New York, 11 December (Argus) — More than 30 tankers could be within the reach of US naval forces positioned near Venezuela if Washington decides to continue seizing ships on its sanctions list. "There are 37 undeparted OFAC-designated tankers currently in Venezuela," Samir Madani, chief executive of independent vessel tracking service Tanker Trackers, told Argus — referring to the Treasury Department's sanctions enforcement arm, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). "Maybe one or two departed recently, but that's the ballpark for now, at least." The US seized the tanker Skipper on 10 December, saying it was on the OFAC sanctions list. The ship was falsely carrying the Guyana flag , Guyana's maritime agency Marad said, but was flying the Panama flag up until 2023, according to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) database. The tanker was transmitting falsified AIS positions to conceal its location, according to Kpler. Tanker Trackers estimated it to be laden with around 1.85mn barrels of Merey-16 crude. The ship had sailed as Adisa starting in 2021 before being renamed the Skipper . The US sanctioned the tanker in 2022 for its alleged involvement in an international oil smuggling network that blended and exported Iranian oil in support of Lebanon-based Hezbollah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Former names for Skipper include the Toyo , the name it adopted in 2005, and Maera , the name it changed to in 2019, according to the IMO registry. Overall shipping operations in the Caribbean region today seem fairly normal and freight rates in the region are steady, according to shipbrokers. Chevron resumed imports of Venezuelan crude to the US in August following the reinstatement of its sanctions waiver . More sanctions Separately, the US Treasury Department on Thursday announced sanctions on six tankers — White Crane, Kiara M, H Constance, Lattafa, Tamia and Monique — and six shipping companies it said transported Venezuelan crude in recent months. Treasury last targeted specifically Venezuela-linked tankers in January 2021. The White House said more tankers could be seized. "We're not going to stand by and watch sanctioned vessels sail the seas with black market oil, the proceeds of which will fuel narcoterrorism of rogue and illegitimate regimes around the world," it said. Fewer tankers The number of irregular tankers off the coast of Venezuela already declined in November for the first time since one non-governmental organization began measuring them in July. Tankers identified as likely to be moving sanctioned crude or other products from Venezuela dropped to 17 in November, from 24 in October, the Venezuelan chapter in exile of Transparency International said on Thursday. The figures are based on a narrower set of criteria than the Tanker Trackers figures. The group estimated there were about 12 that arrived in July. But about 41pc of traffic at Venezuela's oil ports still includes sanctioned or otherwise suspect vessels, the group estimated. The presence of all types of oil tankers offshore of Venezuela also declined slightly in November, to 98 from 112 in October. By Charlotte Bawol and Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US seizes tanker off coast of Venezuela: Update 2
US seizes tanker off coast of Venezuela: Update 2
Updates with vessel name, other details throughout. New York, 10 December (Argus) — The US seized a tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Wednesday as it carried crude to Cuba, a significant escalation of US pressure on the South American country. The tanker, the very-large crude carrier Skipper according to British maritime security firm Vanguard Risk Group, was laden with Venezuelan crude loaded at the port of Jose, Venezuela's main export hub. It was set to discharge in Cuba on 17 December, according to shipping information firm Kpler. The tanker is on a US list of sanctioned vessels allegedly involved in illegally transporting Iranian and Venezuelan crude, US attorney general Pam Bondi said via a social media post. Venezuela's government called the seizure "an act of international piracy". Neither Venezuela's state-owned oil company PdV nor its energy ministry responded to requests for comment. The tanker is not connected to Chevron, which operates in Venezuela under a US sanctions waiver, a company source in Venezuela said. Trump first announced the seizure earlier Wednesday during a live broadcast while speaking to business leaders at the White House about his administration's efforts to rein in inflation — including by lowering oil prices. January Nymex WTI rose by 21¢/bl on Wednesday to close at $58.46/bl — adding about $1/bl from the session low after news of the tanker seizure. The US has stationed a large naval force in the waters near Venezuela since September as part of an effort ostensibly aimed at stopping waterborne drug shipments. The US has destroyed around 20 small boats in the area it said were carrying drugs, killing more than 80 people. Trump said on 27 November that he would order land strikes against Venezuela soon. The administration's maritime operations near Venezuela had come under scrutiny from Congress before the tanker was seized, with some lawmakers asserting that the US military may have committed war crimes by indiscriminately targeting the crews of boats allegedly carrying drugs. Taking their oil The US is likely to keep the Venezuelan oil cargo it seized, Trump said on Wednesday. The US since 2019 has seized seven tankers carrying Iranian oil in international waters. All were transported to the US, with US courts allowing the government to sell the cargoes and use the proceeds to satisfy legal claims brought forward against Tehran by US citizens. By Charlotte Bawol and Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US seizes tanker off coast of Venezuela
US seizes tanker off coast of Venezuela
New York, 10 December (Argus) — The US seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela today, according to President Donald Trump. Trump announced the seizure in a live broadcast while speaking to business leaders at the White House today. He did not share any other details on the seizure or the vessel. The US has stationed a large naval force in the waters near Venezuela since September as part of an effort ostensibly aimed at stopping waterborne drug shipments. The US has destroyed around 20 small boats in the area it said were carrying drugs. Trump said on 27 November that he would order land strikes against Venezuela soon. By Charlotte Bawol Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Vancouver Aframax rates decline
Vancouver Aframax rates decline
Houston, 3 December (Argus) — An increase of Aframaxes on the Pacific side of the Americas positioning towards Asia-Pacific lowered eastbound rates out of Vancouver, as well as rates for short-haul voyages to the US west coast. The rate to ship 80,000t of crude, or about 550,000 bl of Cold Lake, from Vancouver to China fell to $3mn lumpsum on Wednesday, down by $400,000 from the start of December. That rate, the lowest in more than a month, was equivalent to $5.54/bl for Cold Lake. Suncor put the Esteem Cowboy on subjects for that rate and route loading from 19-20 December. The deal followed a pair of Aframaxes put on subjects earlier in the week for the same route at $3.25mn. There were approximately 34 Aframaxes available to load out of Vancouver over the next 20-24 days, according to analytics platform Vortexa. That was up from 22 Aframaxes available from the same point in November. Even with rates falling, demand has kept levels buoyed above where they averaged during the summer months. Canadian heavy waterborne crudes are more competitively priced into China so far in December than grades from the Mideast Gulf. The Vancouver-China Aframax rate dipped below $2mn in June, held above that level for most of July, and hovered just below that level through most of August. The rate for a USWC-bound voyage was also lower this week compared with last week, though levels remain higher from the dip seen in the middle of November. The Vancouver-USWC Aframax rate has hovered at Worldscale (WS) 250 since 1 December, equivalent to $3.13/bl for Cold Lake, after holding at WS255 since 19 November. The rate for that route dipped to WS230 in the middle of November but rose through the rest of that month, pushed up as the number of available Aframaxes were siphoned away by Asia-Pacific-bound voyages. Direct transpacific shipments remove vessels from the west coast North America market for about 45 days. Charterers' preferences shifted in 2024 to ship crude directly from Vancouver to destinations in Asia-Pacific, as opposed to traveling down the US west coast to discharge onto a very large crude carrier (VLCC) in the Pacific Area Lightering (PAL) zone. But even with US-China port fees on pause for virtually a year, that will likely remain the preference. The direct route saves time and, with VLCC rate still firm, remains cost-effective. By David Haydon Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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