Citgo Petroleum Corporation is a refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products.
"By imposing these sanctions we're sending a clear message to companies
around the world: those who continue to irresponsibly support Iran's energy
sector or help facilitate Iran's efforts to evade U.S. sanctions will face
significant consequences," Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg said.
For the first time, the United States also slapped
sanctions on an Israeli company for trading with Iran.
The administration identified Israel's
Ofer Brothers Group as helping Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The
State Department said Ofer, a leading Israeli company, sold a tanker to the
IRGC's Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines, assigned to transport
missile and nuclear parts to the Teheran regime. Ofer was said to have
worked with Singapore's Tanker Pacific in the $8.45 million ship sale.
Ofer denied any involvement in the sale of ships to Teheran. A company
statement said the Israeli government could confirm this.
"We have never sold ships to Iran," Ofer said.
Ofer, owned by Israel's richest family, holds a significant stake in such former Israeli
state-owned companies as Zim, Israel Chemicals and Oil Refineries.
"We believe that Tanker Pacific and Ofer Brothers Group failed to
exercise due diligence and did not heed publicly available and easily
obtainable information that would have indicated that they were dealing with
IRISL," the U.S. State Department said.