A portion of Russia's extensive fleet of oil tankers is facing disruption due to US sanctions, indicating that stricter measures imposed by Western regulators may be starting to impact Moscow in tangible ways, reports Bloomberg.
According to Bloomberg's ship-by-ship tracking, half the 50 tankers sanctioned by the US Treasury since October 10 have been unable to load cargo since being placed on the list.
The most recent addition to this list, the Sovcomflot carrier NS Leader, abruptly changed course off the coast of Portugal when its owner was sanctioned by the US while en route to a Russian port in the Baltic Sea.
In December 2022, the Group of Seven implemented a US$60-per-barrel price ceiling on crude oil, aimed at maintaining Russian oil flow while curtailing Kremlin revenue from petrodollars.
Restrictions on refined products followed two months later. Despite criticism and Moscow's attempts to find loopholes, intensified US sanctions and investigations into potential breaches of the price cap have led many Greek tanker owners to withdraw from trading with Russia.
As a result, freight costs have surged, and Russian oil is being sold at deeper discounts compared to international benchmarks, as reported by organisations such as the International Energy Agency.
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak acknowledged that the country's oil sells at lower prices.
The situation remains complex due to the phased imposition of sanctions by the US Treasury, meaning that some ships may not have reached the stage of loading cargo yet.
Out of the 50 tankers sanctioned since early October, 18 have loaded cargoes.
Among them, nine were shuttle ships, and nine seemed to have collected consignments as usual since being added to the list. One vessel is still carrying a cargo loaded before it was sanctioned. This leaves 31 tankers.
Of these, seven were already inactive before sanctions, and three are expected to load soon. This leaves 21 tankers that have not loaded cargo since being sanctioned.
SeaNews Turkey
According to Bloomberg's ship-by-ship tracking, half the 50 tankers sanctioned by the US Treasury since October 10 have been unable to load cargo since being placed on the list.
The most recent addition to this list, the Sovcomflot carrier NS Leader, abruptly changed course off the coast of Portugal when its owner was sanctioned by the US while en route to a Russian port in the Baltic Sea.
In December 2022, the Group of Seven implemented a US$60-per-barrel price ceiling on crude oil, aimed at maintaining Russian oil flow while curtailing Kremlin revenue from petrodollars.
Restrictions on refined products followed two months later. Despite criticism and Moscow's attempts to find loopholes, intensified US sanctions and investigations into potential breaches of the price cap have led many Greek tanker owners to withdraw from trading with Russia.
As a result, freight costs have surged, and Russian oil is being sold at deeper discounts compared to international benchmarks, as reported by organisations such as the International Energy Agency.
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak acknowledged that the country's oil sells at lower prices.
The situation remains complex due to the phased imposition of sanctions by the US Treasury, meaning that some ships may not have reached the stage of loading cargo yet.
Out of the 50 tankers sanctioned since early October, 18 have loaded cargoes.
Among them, nine were shuttle ships, and nine seemed to have collected consignments as usual since being added to the list. One vessel is still carrying a cargo loaded before it was sanctioned. This leaves 31 tankers.
Of these, seven were already inactive before sanctions, and three are expected to load soon. This leaves 21 tankers that have not loaded cargo since being sanctioned.
SeaNews Turkey