VOLGONEFT-111

The vessel is owned by the sanctioned russian company Middle-Volga Shipping Company LLC (ООО "Средневолжская судоходная компания"), which is subject to Ukrainian sanctions and acts as a supplier to the sanctioned Rosnefteflot JSC (АО "Роснефтефлот") under at least two contracts worth RUB 94.4 million within the russian state procurement system. Rosnefteflot JSC is part of the group of the sanctioned russian state-owned company Rosneft Oil Company PJSC (ПАО "НК "Роснефть"), one of the largest oil producers in the world.
The main activities of Rosnefteflot JSC include chartering tanker vessels for Rosneft PJSC, and organizing river transportation within the Volga-Don, Azov-Don, Volga, and Volga-Baltic basins.
The fleet of the vessel’s owner includes other sanctioned vessels.
Since May 2023, the tanker has been consistently engaged in dark activity near the Kerch Strait, in the Black Sea and Azov Sea, including the area between Mariupol and Yeysk.
In August 2024, the tanker bunkered the sanctioned vessel IMO 9903877 in the Kerch Strait area of the Azov Sea, as well as the vessel IMO 9224441, which is affiliated with the sanctioned russian company Sovcomflot PJSC (ПАО "Совкомфлот")—the largest state-owned shipping company in russia specializing in offshore hydrocarbon support and the transportation of russian oil, petroleum products, and liquefied natural gas. Its vessels are primarily chartered by major russian oil and gas companies and traders.
Also in August 2024, the tanker bunkered the vessels IMO 9720263 (under U.S. sanctions), IMO 9715270, and IMO 8866321—all participants in schemes involving the theft of Ukrainian grain from the temporarily occupied territories (TOT) of Ukraine.
In November 2022, the tanker conducted a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer with tanker IMO 9309576 (under U.S., EU, and Swiss sanctions), which is also affiliated with Sovcomflot PJSC.