Insurance Companies Refuse to Compensate Chevron for Oil Cargo Seized by Iranian Government

According to a complaint filed on Tuesday, May 18, in a court in California, three insurance companies rejected a $57 million damage claim from American oil company Chevron regarding the seizure of an oil tanker and the confiscation of its cargo by the Islamic Republic last year. The Iranian government seized the 'Advantage Sweet' tanker carrying Chevron oil, which had been loaded in Kuwait, on May 7 of last year in the Gulf of Oman and transferred its oil to an Iranian tanker. According to Reuters, the three insurance companies, Zurich American, Liberty Mutual, and Great American, requested a U.S. district court in San Francisco to dismiss Chevron's $57 million claim. Chevron claimed that it was entitled to compensation based on protection against war risks and marine cargo insurance coverage. These companies rejected the claim, stating, 'The seizure of crude oil and its subsequent confiscation by Iran does not constitute an act of war.' They also told the court that the marine cargo coverage policy does not include seizure or confiscation. A Chevron spokesperson said, 'The military seizure of the 'Advantage Sweet' tanker by the Islamic Republic in international waters carrying Chevron's oil cargo was a hostile act clearly covered by our insurance policies. We will prove this in court.' The complaint states that Chevron had chartered the 'Advantage Sweet' to transport crude oil to Texas from a neutral zone between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, where Chevron has oil production operations. The Islamic Republic seized the 'Advantage Sweet' on May 7 of last year after the U.S. seized the 'Suez Rajan' tanker, which was carrying oil cargo from the Revolutionary Guard, claiming that it had collided with an Iranian vessel. Iranian harassment of ships in international waterways continues. The U.S. State Department on Saturday, April 25, condemned the seizure of the 'MSC Aries' ship, flagged in Portugal and owned by Britain, by the Islamic Republic of Iran. The department called on the Islamic Republic to immediately release this ship and its international crew. According to a State Department spokesperson, the seizure of a civilian vessel without any provocation from it is a 'gross violation of international law' and 'piracy' by the Revolutionary Guard, designated as a 'foreign terrorist organization.' The proposal to designate the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization was approved in the House of Commons in Canada. From the situation in Ukraine and Gaza to the role of the Islamic Republic, it is at the center of discussions among European Union foreign ministers. The 'Alliance Against a Nuclear Iran' organization warned about the Revolutionary Guard's abuse of universities in Sweden. A new threat from the Houthis in Yemen: targeting Israeli ships in the Mediterranean. Exclusive: The U.S. strongly condemned the Revolutionary Guard's 'piracy.'