Shadow‑fleet numbers

Russia’s oil trade is still moving on aging tankers outside Western insurance and shipping systems, turning sanctions into a policing problem. (home.treasury.gov) The Group of Seven price cap took effect on December 5, 2022, letting Russian crude move only if Western shipping, insurance and other services were used below a $60-a-barrel ceiling. The European Union also banned seaborne Russian crude imports as part of its sixth sanctions package. (home.treasury.gov) (consilium.europa.eu) Russia responded by shifting cargoes onto what European Parliament researchers describe as a “shadow fleet” using opaque ownership, flags of convenience, ship-to-ship transfers and tracking blackouts. Those vessels often operate without Western insurance and outside European Union and Group of Seven corporate structures. (europarl.europa.eu) The enforcement gap is visible in the sanctions lists. The U.S. Treasury said on January 10, 2025 that it sanctioned more than 180 vessels tied to Russia’s oil trade, while Kpler said in October 2025 that only about 40% of vessels sanctioned over Russian crude were under U.S. restrictions, with the European Union and United Kingdom accounting for most of the rest. (home.treasury.gov) (kpler.com) Trade flows also adapted faster than sanctions. Kpler said Russia’s crude exports reached 3.7 million barrels a day in September 2025, even after a broader 2025 sanctions push by London and Brussels. (kpler.com) That is why the fight has shifted from announcing embargoes to controlling the services that make voyages possible. The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation has kept updating general licences and oil price cap rules, including a publication notice amended on January 15, 2026 and a live general-licence register updated on April 16, 2026. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) (gov.uk) Analysts and lawmakers are also focused on risks beyond sanctions leakage. European Parliament researchers said the fleet includes aging, poorly maintained vessels that raise environmental, maritime safety and security concerns in European waters. (europarl.europa.eu) Recent incidents have kept that risk in view. French authorities detained the tanker Deyna in late March 2026 on suspicion of sailing under a false flag, and released it on April 16 after the operator paid a fine, according to Reuters reporting carried by MSN and Yahoo. (msn.com) (yahoo.com) The result is a sanctions regime that still constrains revenue and raises costs, but has not shut the trade down. As long as ships, insurers, registries and waiver systems leave openings, Russia can keep selling oil through parallel channels. (home.treasury.gov) (europarl.europa.eu)