Russia's shadow tanker fleet drops to less than half its previous size

A new analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air shows that Russia's shadow tanker fleet, composed mainly of older and poorly insured tankers used to evade sanctions, has been reduced from 101 vessels in October to just 45 by late June. The decline follows intensified inspections and stoppages by European countries, as well as tighter controls by flag states such as Barbados, Palau, and Panama, which have removed or drastically cut sanctioned vessels from their registers.

Since January, 107 ships have re-registered under the Russian flag, expanding the Russian registry to 382 vessels by June. Most of the newly flagged ships were previously subject to sanctions, and many have employed false flags after the sanctions were imposed. However, the rate of new registrations under the Russian flag has slowed, with only three additions in June compared with 25 in the previous December. CREA warns that the use of the Russian flag hampers European authorities' ability to intercept vessels that would otherwise be stopped for flag fraud, and calls for new monitoring measures.