Ships Still Switch Russian Oil Off Greece Despite Navy Drills

(Bloomberg) —

Tankers carrying Russian oil are still conducting cargo switches with other vessels off Greece’s south coast, despite Greek military drills aimed at deterring such activities.

The supertanker Alma is receiving crude from smaller tanker Sagar Violet in a narrow channel located between two areas near the country’s Laconian Gulf where military drills have taken place since May, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Sagar Violet is loaded with about 730,000 barrels of Russia’s flagship Urals crude.

That gulf was at one point a hotspot for ship-to-ship transfers of Russian oil carried by aging tankers. The Greek government has indicated that the drills — which will continue until November — are designed to stop risky transfers of cargo that the world’s shipping watchdog has said pose a threat to maritime safety.

Ship-to-ship transfers of Russian oil are part of efforts to help Moscow get its oil to the world in the wake of Western sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine.

The Greek navy drills have significantly reduced cargo switches, but failed to eliminate them. Occasional transfers of Russian fuel — especially oil products — have still taken place outside the military zones.

Earlier in July, the vessel Snow Lotus unloaded Urals onto another tanker, Narcissus, which then discharged at India later. The cargo transfer took place at the same pathway between the two military zones.

Another tanker named Arlan carrying Urals has just arrived near the Laconian Gulf, and appears likely to transfer its cargo onto supertanker Alma.