The Oil Nobody Is Allowed to Buy
Mar 31, 2026 · 16:13
Sanctions create a vacuum the shadow oil fleet fills: the episode traces how Russian oil gets smuggled — from the Bosporus jam of 28 ships with 20 million barrels to the paperwork that gets a $75 million cargo paid through banks — using a playbook pioneered by Marc Rich. Host Phil Andrews explains Rich's 'Apartheid Premium' earned him $1–2 billion selling oil to sanctioned South Africa for 20 years. Smuggling takes a rust-bucket tanker bought for $15 million, not scrapped for $5 million, a Flag of Convenience from landlocked Bolivia for $500,000, and a 48-hour ship-to-ship transfer with transponders off. Rich's unlock was the post-1973 spot market, letting sellers write 'ON ORDERS' on the Bill of Lading instead of a destination. Footnotes cover Turkey's insurance-based ship stops and why enforcement fuels BRICS currency ambitions.
