Overview
- OFAC let the waiver for Russian seaborne oil expire early Saturday with no renewal posted on Treasury’s website.
- The license reissued in April allowed only cargoes loaded by the cutoff to be delivered without triggering sanctions.
- India, the largest buyer, requested an extension and has taken about 2.3 million barrels per day this month.
- Democratic Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Elizabeth Warren pressed Treasury on Friday to let the waiver lapse, arguing it boosted Russia’s war revenue without cutting U.S. pump prices.
- Energy analysts warn the move could tighten already stressed supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and lift crude and gasoline prices.