Albania has seized an oil tanker carrying 22,500 tonnes of oil suspected of coming from Russia and arrested the crew for breaching a Western embargo, Albanian police said on Feb. 20.
The Liberian-registered oil and chemical tanker was seized in the coastal town of Durres.
"From the first steps of investigation it is suspected that this oil shipment is coming from countries under an oil embargo, especially from Russia," police said in the statement.
"The tanker departed from Azerbaijan and was allegedly loaded with oil at Greece's Kalamata port, from another tanker with the amount of 22,500 tonnes of diesel fuel."
Albania was one of the first countries to introduce sanctions on Russia a year ago when Moscow launched attacks on Ukraine.
Albanian police said that during the operation codenamed Embargo it arrested all 22 crew members for further investigation.
On Feb. 10, Spain's northeastern Tarragona port refused entry to the Singapore-flagged Maersk Magellan after its cargo of oil products was found to have previously been carried by a vessel that was formerly Russian flagged.
Recommended Reading
Report: Crescent Midstream Exploring $1.3B Sale
2024-04-23 - Sources say another company is considering $1.3B acquisition for Crescent Midstream’s facilities and pipelines focused on Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico.
‘Oversupplied’ NatGas Market Aiding Williams’ Storage Business
2024-05-08 - Midstream company Williams saw overall demand growth as heavy gas volumes passed through its network.
Energy Transfer Eyes Draft Environmental Statement for Blue Marlin Project This Quarter
2024-05-09 - Energy Transfer is among several firms vying to build deepwater ports along the Texas Gulf Coast.
Energy Transfer Remains Hungry for M&A, Sees 1Q Oil Volumes Surge
2024-05-09 - Energy Transfer reported record first-quarter crude volumes and expects demand for petrochemicals to continue rising.
Enbridge Plans to Increase Permian Oil Pipeline’s Capacity
2024-05-10 - Midstream company Enbridge announced an open season on the Gray Oak Pipeline for a proposed 120,000 bbl/d expansion and updated its M&A efforts.