The United States has imposed sanctions for the first time against six Russian oil tankers still under construction at the Zvezda shipyard in Russia.
According to the agency, this is the first time that the US has imposed sanctions on tankers before they have even set sail, let alone transported sanctioned cargo.
Last week's sanctions caused a spike in oil prices and increased tanker shipping costs as the Biden administration took steps to hurt Russia's oil exports and thwart Moscow's attempts to build its own fleet.
Among the 183 vessels on Washington's blacklist last week, the Nursultan Nazarbayev, Alexander Beggrov, Alexei Bogolyubov and three other vessels, whose names have not yet been released, were sanctioned: ‘Zvezda 131080, Zvezda 131060 and Zvezda 131040. All of them are being built at the Zvezda shipyard.
According to the text of the sanctions, the buyer of the Alexander Begrov and Alexei Bogolyubov vessels is the Russian company Sovcomflot, and the buyer of the other four is Rosneft's shipping division Rosnefteflot. Both buyers are also subject to US sanctions.
- Last week, the United States imposed some of the toughest sanctions on the Russian oil industry. The sanctions affect more than 180 tankers carrying Russian oil, as well as Russian marine insurance providers.