‘Dark’ tankers taking on Russian oil

A CHINESE group is using “dark” tankers to take on Russian oil in the middle of the Atlantic, in a hazardous effort to ship more of the tainted crude east.

An anonymous entity based in the Chinese port city of Dalian has bought up a string of super-sized VLCC vessels to create a “transfer hub” in international waters around 1,000 miles off Portugal’s coast, analysts say. According to a report by Lloyd’s List, the maritime intelligence company, at least five “elderly” tankers had been bought by the Dalian firm in the past three months, and are now being used to transport oil.

They are allegedly being used to consolidate shipments of Russian oil loaded at Baltic and Black Sea ports, which are then being taken on to destinations including China. Russia-affiliated vessels transporting Urals blend, chartered by companies such as Gazprom and Lukoil, are often turning off their identification system signal to avoid being tracked – a process known as “going dark”.

Analyst Michelle Wiese Bockmann said: “Ship-toship transfers are regularly used for Russia-origin crude.”

There is no suggestion that the activity is in breach of sanctions.