Iranian oil revenues have fallen to zero under the US naval blockade, the Treasury Department claimed on Thursday as it rolled out new sanctions against Iran's state railway, its two dominant automakers and a Russia-linked shadow banking network that processed more than $17 billion between January 2025 and June 2026.

The measures mark a significant widening of Washington's economic campaign. For the first time under Executive Order 13902, Treasury designated Iran's automotive and rail industries as sanctionable sectors — extending pressure beyond the petroleum industry that has borne the brunt of sanctions since Operation Economic Outcast launched on August 24.

The move comes as the US-Iran conflict reshapes physical trade flows. Ships are waiting significantly longer to refuel at Zhoushan, China's top bunkering hub, where the supply squeeze has pushed up bunker prices.

Which transport operators are now sanctioned?

The headline targets for the freight sector:

• Islamic Republic of Iran Railway Company (RAI), the state rail operator
• Raja Passenger Trains Company
• Sherkat-E Rah Ahan-E Khamle-O-Naghle, the freight rail operator

Treasury said Iran has leaned increasingly on its rail network to move oil and sustain regional commerce as conventional maritime routes have come under pressure from the US military blockade.

The automotive designations hit Iran Khodro and SAIPA Iranian Automobile Manufacturing Company, which together control more than 90% of Iran's domestic car market. The action also covers truck, bus and motorcycle manufacturers and suppliers based in the UAE, Turkey, Indonesia and Hong Kong — a clear signal to third-country vendors that supplying designated Iranian buyers now carries sanctions risk.

How does the A7 network move the money?

In a separate action, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network proposed a rule prohibiting certain transfers involving A7 sub-agents, while the Office of Foreign Assets Control designated the broader A7 Network as a significant transnational criminal organization.

A7 operates through companies in third countries that disguise sanctioned payments as ordinary commercial transactions, using falsified trade documents, import-export records and goods descriptions — a method that puts ordinary forwarders and traders at risk of unknowing exposure.

Treasury's figures sketch the scale:

• A7-linked companies processed more than $17 billion between January 2025 and June 2026
• One sub-agent, together with a related company, received nearly $140 million from entities tied to Iranian sanctions evasion and transacted directly with companies in Iran's so-called shadow fleet
• Another A7-linked company transferred roughly $1.6 million to a business Treasury linked to sanctions evasion and weapons procurement

The network has also used the A7A5 digital token, a ruble-backed cryptocurrency issued by previously sanctioned Old Vector LLC, designed in part to move value outside conventional banking channels.

What does this mean for shippers and banks?

The designations reach deep into heavy industry and metals. They include HEPCO (Heavy Equipment Production Company) and its China-based subsidiary — Treasury said HEPCO machinery has built military facilities for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — plus steel-sector companies in Germany, the UAE, China and Hong Kong accused of supplying Iranian producers or facilitating exports and payments.

Treasury also targeted a network linked to Iranian-Dominican businessman Ramin Keshvardoust, alleging his companies facilitated tens of millions of dollars in Iranian steel and oil shipments while participating in the shadow banking system.

The commercial consequences are direct. Companies dealing with the newly designated entities face blocking sanctions, and in some cases secondary sanctions exposure, if they continue facilitating significant transactions. For banks, forwarders and trading houses with counterparties in the UAE, Turkey, Hong Kong or China, screening against Thursday's designations is now urgent — particularly where payments route through third-country intermediaries with falsified documentation.

Is this the end of the campaign?

Unlikely. Earlier this week Treasury sanctioned another group of companies and individuals accused of procuring weapons and components for Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. The pattern is consistent: with tanker movements constrained by the blockade, Washington is systematically closing the land-based and financial workarounds — rail, trading companies, foreign suppliers and payment channels — that could let Iranian cargoes and revenues keep moving.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent left no ambiguity about the trajectory. "Today's action directly targets Iran's enablers and lays the groundwork for the United States and our partners to drain the regime's revenue once and for all," he said.

Expect further designations against financial intermediaries and procurement networks in the coming weeks as Operation Economic Outcast works through what Treasury calls the remaining financial infrastructure available to Tehran.