Trump’s tanker plan backfires and spirals into costly 'black hole'
Tanker seizure unexpectedly backfires on the US (Illustrative photo: Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump’s plan to seize tankers carrying sanctioned oil has turned into a financial burden for the budget. The costs of maintaining the vessels are already running into tens of millions of dollars, according to The New York Times.
The Trump administration’s campaign to seize tankers transporting oil from Iran, Venezuela, and Russia has encountered an unexpected problem. As revealed in a Washington district court, maintaining the seized assets is extremely expensive.
Instead of filling the budget, the operations require continuous injections of government funds, casting doubt on the quick profits Trump had promised.
A striking example is the tanker Skipper (No. 9304667), seized in December 2025 while transporting Venezuelan oil to Asia. As of now:
- The US has already spent $47 million on repairs and maintenance, despite the vessel’s market value being only $10 million.
- Storing the oil on board costs an additional $450,000 per month.
- In the near future, the government will spend another $5 million on insurance and crew salaries.
The US Department of Justice acknowledges that the costs of managing such assets far exceed standard levels. Currently, the US controls 10 similar tankers.
Legal trap and White House plans
The main difficulty is that the US government cannot legally sell the seized oil, valued at $120–135 million in the Skipper case, without a final court ruling.
Despite the financial losses, the White House plans to expand the campaign, including against tankers carrying Iranian oil. The Trump administration believes these steps are justified, as they hold accountable countries circumventing sanctions and destabilize the economies of adversaries.
Prosecutors have already petitioned the court to allow the urgent sale of the cargo to prevent further losses. If the sale is permitted, some of the proceeds are planned to go to a fund aiding victims of terrorism.
Tanker seizures
On January 15, the US Southern Command announced that its forces seized the sanctioned tanker Veronica, which is linked to Venezuela. This was the sixth such case in recent times.
Earlier, on January 7, US forces detained the Russian vessel Bella 1 (now Marinera) in the North Atlantic for violating US sanctions.
On the same day, it was reported that the US seized another tanker from Russia’s shadow fleet in the Caribbean, the vessel Sophia.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump recently commented on the seizure of the tanker Mariners. He confirmed the interception and stated that the US is already offloading oil from the vessel.
