India-bound tanker carrying Russian crude U-turns in Baltic Sea

An India-bound tanker filled with Russian crude reversed course and is now idling in the Baltic Sea, a sign of potential disruption in oil trade between the two countries after the US tightened sanctions on Moscow.

The Furia was moving westward in a strait between Denmark and Germany when it turned around on Tuesday and sailed for a short distance before slowing down drastically, ship-tracking data showed. The Aframax is carrying a cargo sold by Rosneft PJSC, according to Kpler.

The vessel’s U-turn in the Fehmarn Belt occurred a week after the US slapped sanctions on state-owned Rosneft and fellow Russian oil giant Lukoil PJSC. Transactions involving the two companies must be wound down by Nov. 21, the Treasury Department said.

The blacklisting of Russia’s largest producers threatens to cut off a relatively cheap source of crude for Indian refiners. Senior executives at Indian processors have told Bloomberg that flows of Russian oil are expected to plunge as a result.

The Furia lifted nearly 730,000 barrels of Urals crude from Russia’s Baltic port of Primorsk on Oct. 20, data from ship-tracking platforms Kpler and Vortexa show. The vessel initially displayed Sikka — a port in the Indian state of Gujarat used by private refiner Reliance Industries Ltd. and state-backed Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd. — as its next destination, with an expected arrival date of mid-November.

It later changed its schedule to indicate arrival in Egypt’s Port Said by the middle of next month. Vessels that traverse the Suez Canal, the quickest route between Russia’s western ports and India, sometimes signal Port Said as a destination before adjusting to their final destination after passing through the waterway.

Reliance, which has a long-term contract to buy Urals from Rosneft, has said it is committed to complying with sanctions and was seen scooping up Middle Eastern crude after the US imposed its latest trade measures. Indian state refiners have also turned cautious on buying cargoes from US-sanctioned Russian producers.

Indian refiners often buy crude on a delivered basis, meaning they assume ownership only when the cargoes are discharged at the destination port. Reliance and BPCL did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

At the same time, some European nations — including Denmark — have been stepping up checks on tankers in order to halt vessels carrying Russian crude from passing through their waters. Denmark said this month it will target older ships, which are often used by Russia’s so-called shadow fleet.