A Russian-operated oil tanker that Britain turned away over a week ago has yet to find a port to discharge its cargo, and many other vessels are likely to be in the same position as buyers shun trade deals following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, reports Reuters.
Ban on Russian oil
On Tuesday, US President Joe Biden imposed an immediate ban on Russian oil and other energy imports and Britain announced soon after that it would phase out the import of Russian oil and oil products by the end of 2022.
The European Union has yet to provide clarity on the prospect of a similar ban by the bloc. The European Commission, the EU executive, has only said it would continue to work on further sanctions.
Britain on March 1 banned from its ports all ships that are Russian-owned, operated, controlled, chartered, registered or flagged.
The situation is not clear-cut as Britain later said Russia could still send oil and gas to the country because the sanction targeted the vessel, not its cargo.
Tanker not allowed to unload
Dockers, however, refused to unload a tanker carrying Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) last week, forcing it to discharge in France.
Earlier on Feb 28, the NS Champion, operated by Russian shipping company Sovcomflot (SCF), changed course and sailed away from Britain towards Denmark, ship-tracking data on Eikon showed.
The vessel last reported its position close to Denmark’s coast on Wednesday with its status showing as underway using engine, tracking data showed.
SCF did not respond to a request for comment, and the ship’s crew could not be reached.
Cargo yet to reach destinations
Under Danish law, ports are obliged to receive vessels provided there is space and security considerations are met.
Danish authorities did immediately comment on whether they had been in contact with the NS Champion.
Up to 65 million barrels of Russian crude are estimated to be on board 90 tankers, which have yet to reach destinations, predictive maritime analytics company Windward said.
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Source: Reuters
