The amount of Russian and Iranian oil held on ships has hit multi-month highs as harsher U.S. sanctions reduced the number of buyers, leaving fewer tankers available to deliver cargoes and driving up crude costs,

A huge and growing amount of Russian and Iranian oil is stuck on tankers worldwide as Western sanctions continue to impede cargo delivery, experts believe. Oil prices and freight rates are up amid a lack of suitable vessels, while fewer Chinese and Indian refiners are willing to receive barrels on blacklisted ships.

An oil tanker carrying crude from a Russian producer that was recently sanctioned by the US has been floating off West Coast of India for two days, raising a question about whether authorities in the south Asian country will allow the vessel to deliver its cargo.

Russia is facing the threat of a reduction in oil production due to US sanctions and Ukrainian drone attacks. Source: Reuters Details: Reuters noted that the US sanctions have complicated access to tankers supplying oil to Asia,

The latest US sanctions against Russia’s oil sector have led to the suspension of most Russian tankers. Source: Bloomberg Details: Currently, 94 out of 154 tankers sanctioned under the Biden administration have stopped transporting Russian oil.

The sanctions, which targeted Gazprom Neft, Surgutneftegaz, and 180 shadow fleet tankers, have created a surplus of oil in Russia that cannot be exported abroad. The ports of Ust-Luga, Primorsk on the Baltic and Novorossiysk on the Black Sea have seen a 17% drop in January export deliveries,