Tanker owners in Europe seek to increase the transportation of Russian oil as much as possible before energy sanctions against Russia come into force, reports The Wall Street Journal.
As notes the publication, impending sanctions are currently causing concerns among European processors and shipowners that they can be blacklisted for business with Russia. According to brokers, the Greek owners of tankers, who control almost a third of the world oil fleet, transported about half the volume of Russian oil in May and June. According to Lloyd’s List Intelligence, in these two months, Greek ships made 151 enters into Russian ports in the Black and Baltic Seas compared to 89 approaches for the same period a year earlier.
The Executive Director of the Greek Shipping Company, on the terms of anonymity, said that no one can say what will happen to the tanker market after the entry into force of sanctions. At the same time, according to him, “in the end, this can be a pure positive, because the demand for oil is still high, and the vessels will most likely be directed for oil delivery from other countries such as the United States and the Middle East.” He believes that tankers “will go long distances, which means that they will earn more money.”