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Sanctioned Russian Oil Shipment Takes Secretive, Stop-and-Swap Route Toward China
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![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
A cargo of Russian oil sold by US-sanctioned energy giant Rosneft has reached Chinese waters after an unusually long and circuitous journey involving an offshore tanker-to-tanker transfer near India and a brief stop off South Korea, Bloomberg reported on December 9.
The tanker Fortis—carrying roughly 700,000 barrels of crude—anchored off China’s Rizhao port on Tuesday, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg.
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All but one of the import berths at the port have been blacklisted by the United States over alleged involvement in the Iranian oil trade.
The 11-week voyage underscores the uncertainty and logistical improvisation that US sanctions have injected into Russia’s global oil exports, as buyers attempt to avoid heightened scrutiny from Washington. It remains unclear whether Fortis will ultimately discharge its cargo at Rizhao, and neither the vessel’s manager nor owner responded to Bloomberg’s requests for comment.
🛳️ A shipment of Russian oil from US-sanctioned Rosneft PJSC has made its way to Chinese waters after a long, meandering journey that involved a rare tanker transfer off India and a brief stop near South Korea, - Bloomberg
— Savchenko Volodymyr (@SavchenkoReview) December 9, 2025
The Fortis, carrying the cargo of around 700,000… pic.twitter.com/HO25GP5hgs
The shipment originally departed Russia on a different vessel—the Ailana—which picked up about 720,000 barrels in late September from Ust-Luga on the Baltic Sea. It then traveled through the Mediterranean and Suez Canal before idling off Mumbai for nearly two weeks.
From there, Ailana transferred the oil to Fortis at sea, according to Bloomberg and data from Kpler. Fortis first signaled it was heading to Kochi in southern India, then changed destination to Ningbo, China, and later to Yeosu, South Korea, where Kpler data indicates a portion of the cargo was again transferred to another tanker.
Transporting crude from Russia’s western ports to China typically takes about two months. This cargo remained at sea almost a full month longer as sanctions pressure forced route changes and masked logistics.
Fortis is owned by Vietnam-based Pacific Logistic & Maritime and managed by North Star Ship Management, Bloomberg reported.
Earlier, Russia’s Baltic LNG export plant shipped its first gas delivery to China despite US sanctions imposed in January 2025 on the country’s largest oil companies, including Gazprom Neft.
