The LNG shadow fleet to move blacklisted Russian LNG is expected to expand amid growing clandestine activities, such as the resale of older LNG carriers to shell companies in the second-hand market, ship-to-ship cargo transfers in undisclosed locations and hard-to-track monetary and commercial transactions.
The roughly nine LNG carriers sanctioned by the US so far are likely just the beginning of a larger fleet expected to emerge in the coming years to transport more Russian LNG as western sanctions continue to tighten, according to sanctions experts.
Recent focus has been on ships associated with the sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project, but importers of Russian LNG, such as utilities in Japan, have been bracing for a much broader crackdown on Russian LNG exports. Meanwhile, the EU has been mulling phasing out Russian fossil fuel imports by 2027, potentially leaving more molecules stranded.
DB2