British marine service providers are coming under greater scrutiny for their dealings with Russian oil, with major reports carried this week by both the Financial Times and the BBC. The BBC, the UK’s state-run broadcaster, is reporting today that the government is investigating 37 UK-linked businesses including a number of marine insurers for potentially breaking Russian oil sanctions. A spokesperson for the Treasury told the BBC it would take enforcement action “where appropriate” and it was “putting sanction breachers on notice”. No fines have been issued thus far. The effectiveness of the Russian oil price cap, in force for nearly two years now, has been questioned repeatedly. The crude oil price cap, which came into effect on 5 December 2022, was implemented by the EU, G7 and Australia, restricting the use of Western shipping services if prices for Russian oil exceed a certain price cap, currently set at $60 per barrel of crude oil. A similar cap for Russian products came into effect two months later. The enormous size of the dark fleet makes it harder to regulate British politicians held an inquiry earlier this year to look at how sanctions against Russia had been working. Written evidence submitted to the UK parliament by the International Group of P&I Clubs warned that the oil price cap was not working. The insurers warned that the price cap “appears increasingly unenforceable” as more ships and associated services move into the shadow fleet. The World Bank has also called the price “unenforceable”. In July, 44 European leaders issued a call to action pledging to disrupt and deter the shadow fleet by targeting its “ships and facilitators”. “We urge ship owners and operators, the marine insurance industry, ship brokers and other relevant maritime stakeholders to adhere to their relevant obligations, and support the prevention, detection and reporting of ‘shadow fleet’ activities,” the leaders said. The International Maritime Organization (IMO), meanwhile, has called on flag states to crack down on the illicit activities of shadow tankers and enforce regulations on ship‐to‐ship operations. The IMO has also asked port states to subject potential shadow vessels to enhanced inspections. Global insurer Allianz’s annual shipping report published earlier this year noted of the shadow fleet: “Despite efforts to crack down on these vessels, the number of tankers is actually increasing, and we have seen a number of groundings and collision incidents.” “Although regulators and governments are evidently keeping an eye on the grey fleet, its enormous size now arguably makes it harder to regulate,” stated a recent report from broker, BRS. Yesterday, the Financial Times published the detailed results of a five-month investigation into Russia’s dark fleet in which London-listed Braemar was accused of helping broker a number of tankers to move Russian oil. “For every transaction that Braemar considers undertaking, it conducts all appropriate due diligence with know-your-customer checks, legal, compliance and regulatory adherence,” Braemar told the Financial Times. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1_95_0_1_2'); }); TagsRussia United Kingdom