Japanese refiners Showa Shell and Fuji Oil will jointly load around 2 million barrels of Iranian crude on a VLCC arriving at Kharg Island later Wednesday, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told S&P Global Platts.
Showa Shell and Fuji Oil will fully load Iranian crude on the VLCC Tsugaru, the source said.
Platts trade flow software cFlow also showed that the VLCC Tsugaru was scheduled to arrive at Kharg Island Wednesday.
A Fuji Oil spokesman confirmed Wednesday that the refiner was jointly lifting an Iranian crude cargo with Showa Shell on the tanker, which is scheduled to arrive in Japan in mid-February.
The latest lifting comes days after Fuji Oil and Showa Shell loaded the first Iranian crude oil cargo to be lifted by the Japanese refiners, as well as by Japan, since the country won the 180-day sanctions waiver on November 5.
Platts trade flow software cFlow showed the cargo-laden VLCC Kisogawa left Iran's Kharg Island Sunday bound for Kawasaki, Tokyo Bay. It is now estimated to arrive at Kawasaki on February 9, according to cFlow.
Fuji Oil and Showa Shell are Japan's main buyers of Iranian crude. Fuji Oil, in which Showa Shell has a 6.57% stake, operates the sole 143,000 b/d Sodegaura refinery. Showa Shell also operates the 70,000 b/d Keihin refinery in Kawasaki.
Fuji Oil and Showa Shell's loading of Iranian crude comes after Platts reported on January 15 that major Japanese banks are set to resume Iranian oil transactions after receiving final regulatory clearance, paving the way for the country's refiners to begin loadings as early as this month.
Japanese refiners and shipping companies recently resolved their concerns over relevant shipping insurance for Iranian imports and were awaiting bank and regulatory approval before resuming inflows.
Japan did not import any crude from Iran in November. The country last recorded zero Iranian oil imports in July 2012 during the last international sanctions against Tehran.
