Yemen Monitor/Newsroom:
Three Greek oil tankers are taking alternative routes stretching thousands of miles to transport Russian crude oil from the Baltic Sea to customers in Asia.
According to Bloomberg tracking data, the tankers “Agios Gerasimos,” “King Philippos,” and “Nissos Antikyra” are currently sailing around the coasts of Africa and are believed to be heading towards India. A fourth oil tanker, named “Amadis,” is expected to take a similar route.
Although the price of Russian Urals crude is below $60 a barrel at the export point, Western oil tankers are not restricted from transporting Russian oil. However, it is considered unusual for these ships to bypass the traditional route through Egypt’s Suez Canal and the Red Sea.
The motives for these long voyages remain unclear, but many ship owners, including European ones, are avoiding the Red Sea due to the continued threats of attacks on commercial vessels by the Houthi militants in Yemen.
