The oil tanker Marathon, pictured above bearing its previous name, “Seaborn.” Photo: Demosthenes Kyriakoulis / MarineTraffic
Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” of oil tankers has begun avoiding the English Channel, steering clear of high-risk zones and traditional shipping routes, according to maritime analysts at Starboard Maritime Intelligence, who spoke to the All Exclusive project.
For over a month now, Russia-linked tankers have been diverting around the Channel via the west of Ireland, Starboard analyst Mark Douglas told All Exclusive. The only known exceptions were the tankers Selva and Sierra, which passed through the waterway in late June — accompanied at the time by the Russian Navy’s Boikiy corvette, a Steregushchiy-class warship. Both tankers are under UK sanctions, while Sierra is also sanctioned by the European Union.
At least three tankers — Marathon, Ma Jin, and Tiburon— have since altered their routes.
The Marathon, loaded with crude oil, left the Baltic Sea and sailed around the UK, bypassing the Channel and the WETREP reporting area, where ships are obligated to broadcast their location. As previously reported by The Insider, the Marathon is unregistered. In June, it passed through Estonian waters at night, seemingly in an effort to avoid detention. The Danish Maritime Authority said it attempted to make contact with the vessel, but was misled by the crew, who claimed it was sailing under the flag of the Comoros Islands
The Tiburonfollowed a similar path but later altered its destination to the Kola Peninsula. At one point, it turned off its Automatic Identification System (AIS), complicating tracking efforts. According to Douglas, the ship had no flag at the time but has since been registered under that of Sierra Leone.
Meanwhile, the Ma Jin has been drifting near the western entrance to the Channel for more than a week. Analysts suspect the vessel may be waiting either for Russian naval escort or reflagging. The Ma Jin is currently signaling a Panamanian flag, but it remains unclear whether this registration is legitimate.
The Ma Jin has been zigzagging near the entrance to the English Channel for a week.
Image: Starboard Maritime Intelligence
The Sierra, which previously crossed the Channel under Russian naval escort, recently loaded cargo in the Russian port of Primorsk and is again moving through the Baltic. As of now, it appears to be traveling without military support.
A growing number of tankers in Russia’s shadow fleet now sail without valid registration — a violation that legally opens them to detention and seizure. This risk is especially high in the narrow waters of the Baltic Sea, where territorial and economic zones are strictly defined among Sweden, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Denmark, and Estonia. So far, only Estonia and Germany have attempted to detain such vessels.
Estonia’s Department of Transport told The Insider that enforcement outside national territorial waters is extremely difficult. Many of these vessels are tied to offshore shell companies, fly questionable or fake flags, and engage in frequent reflagging — all of which complicates issues of legal jurisdiction and causes delays for states inclined to take direct action.
On July 3, Denmark’s Maritime Authority toldTradeWinds that enforcement efforts are further hindered by flag states failing to respond to official queries. This was cited as the reason the Marathon was not detained in Danish waters in mid-June.
