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Four Tankers Formally Serving Oman Join Russia’s Shadow Fleet to Evade LNG Sanctions
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Four liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers previously used to service Oman’s export infrastructure have begun loading fuel from Russia’s sanctioned project, signaling Moscow’s continued efforts to expand exports and circumvent Western restrictions.
According to ship-tracking data reviewed by Bloomberg on May 18, the tanker Kosmos docked near Murmansk in western Russia over the weekend alongside the sanctioned floating storage unit Saam before departing with a deeper draft, indicating it had likely loaded cargo.
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Three additional vessels formerly linked to Omani operations—Merkury, Orion, and Luch—have either already collected LNG from the Saam facility or are currently moving into position to do so, the data shows.
Bloomberg reported that Kosmos earlier this year switched to a Russian flag, adopted a new name, and transferred ownership to a relatively obscure company. Another vessel, Mercury, loaded cargo from Saam previously in May and is currently crossing the Atlantic, likely en route to Asian markets. Orion is reportedly sailing toward the Arctic LNG 2 area, while Luch remains nearby.
Additionally, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of shipping data, at least 20 tankers are now involved in servicing sanctioned Russian LNG exports.
“That comes as Moscow tries to capitalize on high LNG demand across Asia as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz chokes off a fifth of global supply and sends fuel prices higher,” the outlet noted.
The expansion of Russia’s shadow shipping network comes amid ongoing efforts by Moscow to bypass Western sanctions with the help of covert international logistics schemes.
On May 14, Ukraine’s Office of the General Prosecutor announced that Ukrainian law enforcement agencies, working jointly with Finland’s Customs Service, had uncovered a network involved in acquiring vessels for Russia’s shadow fleet.
According to investigators, the international criminal group included both Ukrainian nationals and foreign citizens and was engaged in purchasing ships in European countries for their covert transfer to Russia. One suspect located in Ukraine has been detained.
The investigation found that after entering open waters, crews aboard the ships allegedly disabled navigation and tracking systems before proceeding to designated locations in neutral waters, where the vessels were secretly transferred to Russian control.
Authorities believe the ships were subsequently integrated into Russia’s shadow fleet and used to support the country’s oil exports amid tightening international sanctions.
Moreover, almost 200 ships associated with Russia’s “shadow fleet” have continued to transit through British waters since UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged stricter action against sanctioned vessels in March.
In March, Starmer announced that British authorities had expanded enforcement powers, allowing UK armed forces to board sanctioned ships passing through the country’s territorial waters as part of efforts to disrupt Russia’s ability to evade Western restrictions on oil exports.
Despite those measures, 184 vessels sanctioned by the UK carried out a combined 238 passages through British waters between March 25 and May 11.
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