Russian tanker instantly turns around after news of sanctions – Bloomberg
A Russian oil tanker headed for the Baltic Sea immediately made a U-turn after the announcement of new US sanctions.
This was reported by Bloomberg
The Russian-owned NS Leader, which was heading to the Baltic port of Primorsk, was off the coast of Portugal when the US Treasury announced new sanctions at around 2 p.m. (21 p.m. Kyiv time) on February 8.
The 250-meter tanker, which was due to load in 10 days, almost instantly halved its speed, turned back, and changed its destination to “for orders,” according to ship tracking and shipping information compiled by Bloomberg.
According to the publication, two months earlier, the Victor Bakayev vessel, also under sanctions, made a similar maneuver, stopping its voyage to another Russian oil export terminal.
Now Viktor Bakayev is anchored in one of the Black Sea ports and has not transported any other cargo since then.
On February 8, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on NS Leader Shipping Incorporated, a Liberian-registered company listed as the owner of NS Leader. The ultimate owner of NS Leader, according to the states, is Russia.
The sanctions were also imposed on the UAE-based companies Zeenit Supply and Trading DMCC, Talassa Shipping DMCC and Oil Tankers SCF Mgmt FZCO.
