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South Korea Suspends Iranian Oil Imports

By
Gary Truitt
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South Korea said Tuesday it will halt oil imports from Iran starting next month due to a European Union ban on insuring shipments of Iranian crude. The insurance ban, which is part of broader EU sanctions aimed at cutting the sources of finance for Iran’s nuclear program, makes it impossible for South Korean companies to ship Iranian crude as they rely on EU companies to insure the shipments.

 

The sanctions affect two South Korean oil refiners, SK Energy Co. and Hyundai Oil Bank Co. South Korea’s two other refiners don’t import Iranian crude.South Korea’s government was in talks with the EU to extend exemptions for South Korea, which imported about 9 percent of its oil from Iran in 2011. On Monday, the European Union Council said exemptions from Iran sanctions will end on July 1 as scheduled.

 

 



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