The US government on Thursday sanctioned energy trading firms Zhuhai Zhenrong of China, Kuo Oil of Singapore and FAL Oil of UAE for doing business with Iran's energy sector.
The action bars the companies from receiving US export licenses, US Export Import Bank financing and loans worth more than $10 million from US banks, the State Department said in a press release.
The State Department said Zhenrong brokered the delivery of more than $500 million in gasoline to Iran between July 2010 and January 2011.
Kuo of Singapore sold more than $25 million in refined products to Iran between late 2010 and early 2011, the State Department said.
FAL provided more than $70 million in refined petroleum to Iran over multiple shipments in late 2010, the US said.
All three companies struck deals that exceeded the $1 million threshold under US law, with annual transactions exceeding the $5 million threshold for a 12-month period, the State Department said.
The State Department stressed that the sanctions target the companies, not their governments.
