A Greek tanker, Skiros, carrying Russian oil was attacked by drones in the Black Sea near Novorossiysk, according to Bloomberg citing its sources.
The attack occurred on August 16. Prior to that, the tanker was loaded with Russian oil at the terminal of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium located near Novorossiysk. The vessel can carry up to one million barrels of oil.
The Greek company managing the tanker informed Bloomberg that there were no casualties from the attack, and there was no oil spill. The company did not provide further details about the incident.
The terminal of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium is primarily used for exporting oil produced in Kazakhstan. According to Bloomberg, about 2% of global oil supplies pass through here. 5-10% of the exported oil is Russian, while the rest is mainly Kazakh. At the time of the attack, Skiros was transporting Russian oil.
Ukrainian forces have previously struck oil infrastructure near Novorossiysk. Kyiv has not yet made any statements regarding the latest attack on Skiros.
Days ago, the Financial Times reported that U.S. Vice President Jay D. Vance asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in late July not to strike the infrastructure of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium and tankers entering the terminal. According to the publication, Kyiv agreed not to target the consortium's infrastructure and non-Russian tankers if they are not under Ukraine's sanctions and do not carry Russian oil or other cargo.
