Relevant provisions Although the insurance company is not registered in any Member State, it has some employees who have key positions, and do business, within the EU. Therefore, the insurance company should consider complying with the EU sanctions when its business involves European nationals even if it does not appear to be a legal entity subject to the EU Regulation. Moreover, the Norwegian Sanction regulation against Iran is almost identical to the EU Regulation. Hence, the discussions on various issues will be based on the European Sanction Regulation against Iran. Article 49 “This Regulation shall apply: (a) within the territory of the Union, including its airspace; (b) on board any aircraft or any vessel under the jurisdiction of a Member State; (c) to any person inside or outside the territory of the Union who is a national of a Member State; (d) to any legal person, entity or body, inside or outside the territory of the Union, which is incorporated or constituted under the law of a Member State; (e) to any legal person, entity or body in respect of any business done in whole or in part within the Union.” Article 8 “1. It shall be prohibited to sell, supply, transfer or export key equipment or technology listed in Annex VI, directly or indirectly, to any Iranian person, entity or body or for use in, Iran. 2. Annex VI shall include key equipment and technology for the following key sectors of the oil and gas industry in Iran: (a) exploration of crude oil and natural gas; (b) production of crude oil and natural gas; (c) refining; (d) liquefaction of natural gas. 3. Annex VI shall also include key equipment and technology for the petrochemical industry in Iran.
Questions involved The main question in this case is whether providing insurance or reinsurance to the rig whilst it is operating in Iranian waters is prohibited under the EU sanctions. In order to answer this question, it should be clarified whether the provisions of the Regulation in respect of restrictions on providing “key equipment and technology to key sectors of oil and gas industry in Iran” or “naval key equipment and technology to any Iranian person, entity or body or for use in Iran” apply to this case. Key equipment and technology to key sectors of the oil and gas industry in Iran As mentioned the sale, supply, or transfer of key equipment and technology for oil and gas industry in Iran is prohibited. For this purpose, a list of key equipment and technology is provided in the annexes to the Regulation. According to the Annex VI, among all listed items, “drilling and production platforms for crude oil and natural gas” are considered to be key equipments which are prohibited under Article 8. Correspondingly, the supply of the rig for use in Iran would be included in this category of listed prohibited activities, and thus falls within the EU sanctions. In addition, providing “technical assistance”, brokering services, “financing or financial assistance” relating to key equipment and technology to Iranian persons, bodies, entities or for use in Iran is prohibited under the Regulation. For the purpose of the Regulation, “technical assistance” is defined as follows: “… any technical support related to repairs, development, manufacture, assembly, testing, maintenance, or any other technical service, and may take forms such as instruction, advice, training, transmission of working knowledge or skills or consulting services, including verbal forms of assistance…” Therefore, surveying services might be interpreted as being included in “technical assistance”. However, the provision of (re)insurance is not to be construed to fall within the category of “technical assistance”. Contrary to the term “technical assistance”, “financing or financial assistance” is not officially defined in the Regulation. There is some guidance as to what “financing or financial assistance” includes in some sections of the Regulation, where the term is used. However, there is no explicit definition or precise approach to this issue. Some examples in which the Regulation provides guidance to the definition of the term “financing or financial assistance” are as follows:
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