Norway has detained the Chinese owned heavy-lift ship Ya Qing Hai Yang after the Norwegian Maritime Authority inspected it on October 13 in Andfjorden, off the Vesterålen Islands, where it had sought shelter from bad weather, and found it had no valid flag registration or the required certificates. The authority detained the vessel the following day and said it will remain in custody until the registration and certification problems are resolved. The ship, previously named Ocean 28, carried large power generation modules built by the Chinese company Wison to the Utrenny terminal serving Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 project in October 2024, and the United States sanctioned its operator in January 2025, with the European Union and other jurisdictions later adding the vessel to their lists.
Norway detains sanctioned heavy-lift ship linked to Arctic LNG 2
Norway has detained the Chinese owned heavy-lift ship Ya Qing Hai Yang, which carried power generation modules for Russia's sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project in October 2024, after inspectors found it had no valid flag registration or required certificates.
Why it matters: The detention is a port state acting directly against a vessel that helped build a sanctioned Russian LNG project, rather than a new sanctions listing, and it leaves a sanctioned heavy-lift carrier in Norwegian custody until its papers are fixed.
Data as of Marine Insight, published October 30, 2026 and read in full in this run, reporting the Norwegian Maritime Authority via High North News, with The Insider and Barents Observer reporting also cited in the article. The inspection was on October 13, 2026 and the detention on October 14, 2026; this is not an event of October 30. Single secondary source in this run and the authority's own statement was not obtained, so carried at evidence grade C.
Sources
- Norway Detains Sanctioned Chinese Heavy-Lift Ship Linked To Russia's Arctic LNG 2 Project - Marine Insight - 2026-10-30