The United Kingdom on Thursday sanctioned 12 oil tankers it identified as part of Russia’s shadow fleet, among 38 new Russian sanctions designations announced by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The 12 vessels comprise nine chemical and products tankers and three oil tankers, all subject to UK shipping and trade sanctions for carrying Russian oil or oil products to third countries.
One of the newly sanctioned vessels, the Dakar, is making a late-season voyage along Russia’s Northern Sea Route carrying a gasoline-blending component. The 22-year-old, 21,297-deadweight-tonne chemical tanker had been flagged this week on the site for sailing the Arctic route without ice-class strengthening. Bellona’s Environmental Transparency Center found 50 shadow-fleet oil tankers and 18 LNG carriers on the route this navigation season through mid-September, already exceeding its totals for all of 2025.