Execs Risking Workers’ Lives to ‘Sneak’ Oil Out of War Zone – The Tuesday AM Quickie 8/6/26
Good morning, I wrote about the Senate candidates in my home state of Alaska. They both support oil and gas expansion and say the industry creates jobs for locals. But that’s not exactly true. Corey is back tomorrow. -Whitney
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Today you’ll read about the runoff in Brazil’s presidential election, John Fetterman’s vote against investigating the murder of his own constituent, and what OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says we have to live with so he can do what he wants.
THE BIG NEWS
Industry Execs Risking Workers’ Lives to ‘Sneak’ Oil Out of War Zone
Executives are plumbing new depths of disregard for life by financially coercing maritime workers to ‘sneak’ oil out of the Strait of Hormuz, the Wall Street Journal reported. Getting oil out of the Gulf can cost up to $40 million per run, but it’s worth it to executives because they’re reaping “some of the best returns the industry has seen in decades.”
The trips are dangerous. Since the end of September, seven ships have been bombed. So the industry is “shelling out between $30 million to $40 million” to workers to risk their lives making the war-zone round trip. They’re preying especially on workers from China, India and the Philippines, offering them up to three times more than what they’d make in a month. In an age of skyrocketing prices and rising inequality, the money is hard to pass up. Per the WSJ:
One Shandong-based ship staffing company is even offering as much as $25,000 per round trip as reward, according to seafarers and recruitment advertisements seen by The Wall Street Journal. For oilers and cadets, the $25,000 could represent more than a year of wages.
An executive at the company said it is currently using the $25,000 offer to recruit oilers and ordinary seamen for a VLCC that will go into the Persian Gulf on a rolling basis.
“Given the millions being made at the moment, that’s absolutely nothing to the shipowners,” said Richard Matthews, director of consulting and research at shipbroker E.A. Gibson.
One sailor who spoke with the Journal said he undertook the trip in the dark at night, windows shut, lights off. GPS equipment failed on both legs of the journey, and after just one round trip, half the crew quit.