Russian President Vladimir Putin observes Novatek’s LNG equipment manufacturing facility in Murmansk
Moving Russian LNG into the shadows
Russia may be looking to create a dark fleet of LNG carriers to get around sanctions on Arctic LNG 2, but it will be hard to replicate its success with shadow oil tankers
Russia has defied Western sanctions on its oil exports in no small part thanks to the amassing of a large so-called ‘dark’ fleet of crude tankers. These vessels have opaque ownership, frequently switch from flag to flag of convenience and change their names, while hiding their movements and making ship-to-ship transfers on the open sea. These deceptive practices help mask the true origin of the oil and petroleum products, their destination and how they are transported, in order to circumvent sanctions. And this has largely been a success. Russia continues to sell its oil and petroleum products above price caps set by the EU and the US, and these exports are still sometimes finding their way,
Also in this section
10 March 2026
By shutting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has cut exports of distillate-rich Middle Eastern crude, jet fuel and diesel, and is holding the energy market hostage
10 March 2026
Eni’s director for global gas and LNG portfolio, Cristian Signoretto, discusses how demand will respond to rising LNG supply, and how the company is expanding its own gas and LNG operations through disciplined, capital-efficient investments
9 March 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis sees increases in output from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Kazakhstan among others before region’s murky descent
9 March 2026
Energy sanctions are becoming an increasingly prominent tool of US foreign policy, with the country’s growth in oil and gas production allowing it to impose pressure on rivals without jeopardising its own energy security or that of its allies, argues Matthew McManus, a visiting fellow at the National Center for Energy Analytics
