Iran settles debts to get ownership French tankers

(Source: F.Milad Trend News Agency, Baku, Azerbaijan (MCT) — Iran has settled debts to a French bank, which had guaranteed repaying loans to Iran for building 11 tankers, and so gets the ownership of the tankers, the Mehr News Agency reported, adding that the French bank was under pressure by some European sates.

The French bank, which has not been named by Mehr, had warned the national Iranian Oil Company for repaying the debts. So, Iran repaid the loans and released the tankers, which were mortgaged from the French bank.

EU sanctions prohibiting European insurers and reinsurers from covering tankers carrying Iranian petrochemicals came into effect on May 1, forcing out most of the ships operating in this niche market.

The National Iranian Tanker Company managing director announced in December 2011 that 21 new tankers will be added to the national fleet by the end of 2013, raising the country’s crude transportation capacity to 180 million tons per year.

“Currently, Iran has 49 oil tankers operating in the national fleet,” the NITC director, Mohammad Souri, told Mehr news agency.

The Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines managing director, Mohammad-Hossein Dajmar, has said that according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Iran holds a 1.17 percent share of the total shipping capacity in the world, placing the country in 19th position.

Iran’s shipping line has currently 165 ships with a capacity of over 1,000 GT and 13 million tons.

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©2012 Trend News Agency (Baku, Azerbaijan)