THE UK has announced fresh sanctions against Russia’s “shadow fleet”, targeting 20 tankers hauling Russian oil and a trading firm it said was instrumental to Moscow’s oil trade.

The announcement brings the tally of Russia-linked vessels blocked by the UK to over 100, which was more than any other nation, the Prime Minister’s Office said.

“These new measures will further drain Putin’s war chest, by clamping down on the oil revenues he so desperately needs to fuel his illegal war and put those who enable Russia’s oil exports on notice.”

The move comes amid a flurry of activity targeting Russia’s oil exports. On Monday, the EU released its 15^th sanctions package, targeting 52 tankers doing Russian business. Earlier on Tuesday, the Nordic-Baltic 8 countries plus Poland, the Netherlands, Germany, and the UK agreed a partnership to challenge insurance of suspected dark fleet* tankers sailing through the Baltic.

In addition to the 20 tankers, the UK sanctioned oil trading firms 2Rivers DMCC and 2Rivers Private Limited. The firms were “key lynchpins in enabling the trading of Putin’s precious oil”, the Prime Minister’s Office said.

2Rivers Group emerged after a management buyout of Coral Energy Group. 2Rivers told Reuters in June that it suspended its Russian business in 2023. The website for 2Rivers was inactive as of Tuesday, and Lloyd’s List was unable to reach the company for comment.

* Lloyd’s List defines a tanker as part of the dark fleet if it is aged 15 years or over, anonymously owned and/or has a corporate structure designed to obfuscate beneficial ownership discovery, solely deployed in sanctioned oil trades, and engaged in one or more of the deceptive shipping practices outlined in US State Department guidance issued in May 2020. The figures exclude tankers tracked to government-controlled shipping entities such as Russia’s Sovcomflot, or Iran’s National Iranian Tanker Co, and those already sanctioned.

Download our explainer on the different risk profiles of the dark fleet here