With several countries putting a ceiling on Russian oil prices, Russia can rely on a fleet of tankers known as the “shadow fleet” to circumvent international sanctions and resolutions.
According to a newspaper article Wall Street Journal Western countries will be able to track Russian oil transported by tankers belonging to international companies, but there are tankers used unofficially to transport oil, called “shadow fleets” and active in trade with Iran and Venezuela, and now increasingly with Russia.
The report indicates that shipping companies have bought dozens of used tankers this year, which are active in the frozen seas around Russia’s Baltic ports.
The newspaper quoted sources familiar with the deals as saying the reason behind the purchase of these tankers is “to supply Russian oil to the market in light of growing sanctions against Russia’s energy industry.”
Frontline CEO Lars Barstad told the newspaper that we are seeing “a new type of freight market, parallel to the normal market in which most of us work”.
John Smith, of Marison and Forestier, said “the fleet of shadow tankers grew a decade ago to ship Iranian oil between the United States as sanctions tightened on Tehran in 2012,” and demand for these tankers increased in 2018. after 2018, when the president restored administration Former US President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Iran.
By next Monday, Moscow will face restrictions on its oil exports as European and US sanctions take effect and slash Russian oil producers, while Washington and its allies peg Russian oil prices at $60 a barrel.
The European Union system should prevent companies from providing services that allow the sea transport (freight, insurance, etc.) of Russian oil if its price exceeds the maximum limit of $60, in order to limit the revenues that Moscow earns from deliveries to countries that do not impose an embargo, such as China or India.
The report stressed that Russian oil is still “Russia’s economic lifeline and key to financing the war in Ukraine, especially after Moscow cuts natural gas sales to Europe,” which will prompt the president Russia’s Vladimir Putin to turn to the “shadow fleet of tankers” to ensure continued revenue flow. .
The report predicts that if sales of Russian oil decline due to a lack of sufficient tankers to transport it to importers, prices for oil and its derivatives could rise globally.
Despite the growing market for “shadow tankers”, there is no definition that determines whether or not the tanker is part of this fleet, while a US Treasury report released in 2020 indicates that some of these tankers change the flags they fly, in order not to talk by turning off transmitters, or even sending deceptive signals, as well as trading oil at sea.
The report added that some of these tankers change the name of the vessel and deliberately forge documents to hide ownership of the tanker, which usually sails without any real insurance on it.
Vortexa oil analyst Armen Azizian told the Wall Street Journal that about 70 tankers carrying cargo from Iran and Venezuela have transported Russian oil since the invasion began.
Moscow said on Saturday it “will not accept” a cap on the price of its oil, following agreement on a mechanism to limit Moscow’s imports to finance its offensive in Ukraine, according to an AFP report.
The price of a barrel of Russian crude is currently around $65.
