How did a Navi Mumbai shipping firm end up at the centre of US Iran sanctions?
Timeline for Fleet Tanqo Private Limited
Mentioned in: India faces three Iran tracks, speaks on one
Iran Conflict 2026Designated by OFAC as part of Shamkhani oil smuggling network; SDN listing risks secondary sanctions exposure for Indian banking counterparties
Iran Conflict 2026: OFAC named India three days before IRGC fireBackground
Fleet Tanqo Private Limited is a Navi Mumbai-based shipping company designated by the US Treasury's OFAC on 15 April 2026 as part of the Shamkhani Iranian oil-smuggling network. It was one of three Indian corporate entities named in a single OFAC action that also sanctioned two Indian nationals and added nine tankers to the Specially Designated Nationals list.
The company served as a corporate intermediary within a broader network using Indian legal entities to obscure the ownership of tankers moving Iranian crude past US export controls. Navi Mumbai, a planned satellite city adjacent to Mumbai port, hosts significant shipping and logistics infrastructure; Fleet Tanqo's registration there placed it within a commercial ecosystem connected to India's largest crude import hub.
The designation freezes any US-jurisdiction assets and prohibits US persons from transacting with the company. The action came three days before the IRGC fired on Indian-flagged tankers in the strait of Hormuz, placing Indian shipping intermediaries at the intersection of US sanctions enforcement and Iranian military aggression in the same week.
What is Fleet Tanqo Private Limited and why was it sanctioned?
Which Indian shipping companies were put on the US sanctions list for Iran?
What does an OFAC designation mean for an Indian company?
Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 21 April 2026. Editorial standards.