Five Energy Oil Trading

"Mehdi Group is able to draw on expertise in oil-related logistics, including refining and storage, through its UAE-based subsidiary Five Energy Oil Trading; India-based Mehdi Group and its director, Ali Zaheer Mehdi, have managed vessels and found additional ones to move Iranian oil. Mehdi Group bears responsibility for crewing and managing at least seven of the vessels used by the network. On August 30, 2019, Mehdi Group was designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 for assisting in, sponsoring, or providing financial, material, or technological support for, or financial or other services to or in support of, Rostam Qasemi; The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) took action against a large shipping network that is directed by and financially supports the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and its terrorist proxy Hizballah. Over the past year, the IRGC-QF has moved oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars or more through this network for the benefit of the brutal Assad regime, Hizballah, and other illicit actors. Senior IRGC-QF official and former Iranian Minister of Petroleum Rostam Qasemi oversees this sprawling network, which features dozens of ship managers, vessels, and facilitators. This complex network of intermediaries enables the IRGC-QF to obfuscate its involvement in selling Iranian oil. The IRGC-QF also relies heavily on Hizballah officials and front companies to broker associated contracts. OFAC also is issuing a new shipping advisory to the maritime community warning of these types of schemes and the sanctions risks associated with blocked persons;" (U.S. Department of the Treasury, "Treasury Designates Vast Iranian Petroleum Shipping Network That Supports IRGC-QF and Terror Proxies," 9/4/2019).