SINGAPORE-based Sea-Lead Shipping, indirectly caught up in US bans on maritime companies associated with Iranian interests, has vowed to continue its Australian service in its present form.
Last Thursday [31 July] SeaLead was forced to cancel charters of containerships – variously reported as 16 or 20 vessels – after the US Office of Foreign Asset Control identified them as linked to a government-tied Iranian businessman.
OFAC said the ships were linked to Marvise SMC DMCC, a Dubai-registered entity, said to be part of the “vast shipping empire” controlled by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy and the son of Ali Shamkhani, a top political adviser to Iran’s supreme leader.
“SeaLead confirms that all charter parties and related contracts involving the affected vessels and entities have been terminated. We remain fully committed to adhering to all applicable sanctions regulations and compliance requirements,” the company said.
The Loadstar identified the ships as Dhanu (1,726 TEU, 2001-built), Bertie (2,478 TEU, 2003-built), Tex (2,492 TEU, 2003-built), Moana (4,992 TEU, 2004-built), Bigli (6,350 TEU, 2005-built), Rantanplan (5,888 TEU, 2006-built), Yogi (5,888 TEU, 2006-built), Pumba (5,060 TEU, 2006-built), Ale (3,398 TEU, 2006-built), Zagor (2,702 TEU, 2006-built), Lidia (3,450 TEU, 2007-built), Hakuna Matata (6,661 TEU, 2008-built), Pinocchio (4,860 TEU, 2009-built), Timon (6,966 TEU, 2009-built), Star (3,534 TEU, 2009-built) and Simba (6,865 TEU, 2015-built). Of these, Tex and Moana have previously called Australia on SeaLead services.
All are technically managed by Draco Buren Shipping, sanctioned by OFAC over its alleged links to Mr Shamkhani, and were taken on charter between 2022 and 2025 as SeaLead expanded rapidly to now rate as the world’s Number 13 container line.
In a statement issued to DCN on Friday night SeaLead said the Australian market is of “utmost importance” to the company.
“SeaLead will maintain the service and existing schedule for its vessel [Zhong Gu Nan Chang] deployed on the CA2 service. SeaLead’s utmost priority is to fulfil contractual obligations to customers and partners, and ensure their cargo reaches its destination safely and timely, including Australia importers and exporters.”
In a notice to customers SeaLead said that at present, only its CRS and 5CX services are impacted, with all other company services remaining fully operational.
“We are taking proactive steps to minimize any service disruption and will provide alternative routing solutions where possible. Please note that current bookings involving the affected vessels may be cancelled at the port of loading.
“Additionally, we may temporarily suspend the acceptance of new bookings for these services until further notice. Our teams are closely coordinating with partners and terminal operators to ensure smooth cargo transitions and to keep you informed with timely updates.
“SeaLead continues to uphold a rigorous due diligence framework, including comprehensive sanctions screening and Know Your Supplier (KYS) protocols, to ensure the compliance of all vessels and ownership structures.”