Russia-trading product tanker drifting with mechanical failure off Finland
Finland’s coast guard is monitoring the vessel that has been drifting in its waters since around 0300 hrs on December 30
Panama-flagged MR tanker Jazz, formerly known as Beks T Rex, is part of the Beks fleet circumventing sanctions on Russian trading. The firm has reorganised its shipmanagement and operations, renaming most of its vessels after several ships and entities were designated by Western regulators
THE Finnish coast guard is reportedly monitoring a Russia-trading tanker Jazz (IMO: 9337327) that is drifting with mechanical failure in its waters.
Panama-flagged Jazz, a medium-range tanker built in 2006, is beneficially owned by the Bekmezci Group of companies, which is owned by Turkish textile magnate Ali Bekmezci.
The tanker is in ballast and was sailing for Primorsk, according to its Automatic Identification System signals.
Jazz is one of 37 bought by Bekmezci since 2022 and immediately deployed in Russian oil trades as part of the Beks fleet.
However many of the vessels have been renamed and shipmangement and commercial operations changed over the past 12 months to circumvent sanctions imposed on Beks by Western regulators.
While Jazz is not defined as being part of the dark fleet under Lloyd’s List methodology as its beneficial owner is known, the tanker is one of many elderly ships solely deployed in Russian trades. There are rising concerns about the technical and safety risks posed by dark fleet* tankers to the environment and crew safety.
Vessel tracking shows the tanker has been drifting since around 0300 hrs to 0400 hrs GMT on December 30.
Finnish media outlet Ilta-Sanomat reported Finland’s coast guard had been in contact with and assigned a tug and patrol ship Turva (IMO: 9650377) to the area.
Turva is the same patrol boat that was used to monitor the interception of Eagle S, the Cook Islands-flagged tanker that damaged the Estlink 2 undersea cable linking the country with Estonia, on Christmas Day.
* 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
