Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent set his sights on Iran’s stranded oil fleet Thursday as a critical source of emergency supply for global energy markets. Bessent revealed the administration is considering temporarily lifting sanctions on approximately 140 million barrels of Iranian crude on tankers in international waters, as part of its response to oil prices above $100 per barrel caused by Iran’s Hormuz blockade.
Iran’s Strait of Hormuz closure has been the dominant event in global energy markets for close to two weeks, removing between 10 and 14 million barrels of daily supply from circulation. The sustained price surge has created economic hardship across oil-importing regions and has placed the administration under intense pressure to find supply solutions of sufficient scale to make a meaningful difference.
Bessent said the Iranian crude stranded on tankers, originally heading toward Chinese buyers, represents a viable short-term supply source. A targeted temporary waiver could unlock this oil for global sale, he argued, providing roughly two weeks of supply support during the US campaign to reopen the strait.
The Treasury has used this kind of mechanism before, issuing a waiver for Russian oil that contributed approximately 130 million barrels to world supply. Bessent confirmed an additional unilateral US Strategic Petroleum Reserve release beyond the G7’s 400 million barrel joint commitment is also in development, while the administration has ruled out any engagement in financial oil market instruments.
Experts and policy analysts raised substantive concerns. They warned that targeting Iran’s oil fleet for emergency supply — even through a narrow temporary waiver — would generate revenues for the Iranian regime that could fund military operations and proxy activities. Critics argued the plan turns a tactical supply source into a strategic liability, providing an adversary with financial resources to continue the very conflict that created the supply crisis.