"Shadow fleet" of Russian tankers shrinks faster than it was formed – Bloomberg

The "shadow fleet" of tankers, which was created to ensure the transportation of Russian oil, has shrunk tenfold.

Source: Bloomberg

The agency said this underscores the challenges of tracking who helps Moscow deliver its oil to buyers worldwide.

According to Equasis, a global maritime database created to encourage safe shipping, Mumbai-based Gatik Ship Management now manages a fleet of only four oil tankers, when in April it had 42, having acquired the majority of those carriers in less than a year.

Gatik came under scrutiny earlier this year when concerns about the company's financial stability were raised by its quickly expanding fleet, which carried a significant amount of Russian oil.

A Group of Seven (G7) pricing cap pertaining to the transportation of Russian oil caused some of Gatik's fleet to lose access to industry-standard insurance. Soon after, a number of the company's ships also lost their classification with Lloyd's Register, another important organisation that certifies fundamental technical requirements for ships.

According to Bloomberg, it's difficult to determine what has actually happened to the fleet. Russian oil is still handled by the ships that are no longer identified as being under Gatik's commercial administration. They are currently governed by a large number of businesses whose ownership structure is likewise hazy.

Background: Russia's "shadow fleet" of tankers carrying sanctioned oil worldwide is getting younger, bucking a months-long trend of using the world's oldest and most dangerous vessels.

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