energy trade

New and obscure buyers, suspected of having ties to Russia, have begun amassing dozens of vessels capable of transporting liquefied natural gas (LNG), indicating that Moscow is expanding its “dark fleet” of gas carriers.

Insiders in the shipping industry report that several previously unknown companies, mostly registered in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have rapidly acquired LNG transport vessels over the past year. This surge in acquisitions has led to rising market prices, especially for older ships.

This wave of purchases mirrors Moscow’s creation of a dark fleet of oil tankers to transport crude globally amid Western sanctions, often using the UAE as an energy trading hub.

Although sales of Russian LNG have been less affected by Western sanctions than oil, Moscow is preparing for a potential tightening of restrictions.

According to consultancy firm Windward, more than 50 LNG vessels changed ownership to companies located in the UAE from the second quarter of 2023, whereas such transactions were previously rare.

The vessel tracking group Kpler indicates that these changes in the LNG tanker market point to a complex network of maritime operations potentially linked to Russian interests. Some groups based in Dubai have opaque ownership structures similar to those managing Moscow’s dark fleet of oil tankers.

Some of the newly acquired LNG vessels are now plying routes traditionally used for transporting gas from Russia. According to Kpler, one vessel loaded LNG from Yamal, Russia’s flagship export project, which has not yet been sanctioned.

LNG has become crucial for the Russian economy amidst the war, providing valuable revenue after losing pipeline exports to Europe since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Although the EU and Asia, major markets for Russian LNG, have refrained from imposing an import ban to avoid destabilising the global gas market, the West has begun taking measures to restrict trade.

In June, the EU approved restrictions prohibiting the transshipment of Russian LNG from large ice-class vessels to smaller ships in EU ports, significantly limiting Russia’s global gas distribution capabilities.

Russia has already established a shadow fleet to transport its oil worldwide, but there is increasing evidence that Moscow has begun creating a fleet for liquefied natural gas as well. Three tankers recently sanctioned by the UK have gathered in the Baltic Sea, with two preparing to load oil at Russian ports Primorsk and Ust-Luga.

Oil production in Russia is expected to remain stable over the next five years despite international sanctions, as state company PAO Rosneft commences extraction at a new major Arctic project. Russia’s revenues from oil and gas sales are projected to increase by more than 50% year-on-year to $9.4 billion in June.