Stricken Russian LNG tanker drifts out of Malta SAR

Exploded Russian shadow fleet LNG tanker the Arctic Metagaz has drifted outside Malta’s Search and Rescue area, this newspaper can confirm.

Sources said the exploded vessel is now 111 nautical miles away from Malta, and responsibility for the drifting ship is now Libyan authorities’.

Maltese authorities are closely following the vessel as it continues to drift away from the islands.

The tanker forms part of Russia's shadow fleet, which emerged after sweeping sanctions were imposed on Russia following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The fleet uses ships with ownership and insurance structures beyond EU and G7 jurisdictions, allowing them to continue trading Russian energy with countries that have not joined the sanctions regime.

On 4 March the vessel exploded in the central Mediterranean and aerial photos showed a large gaping hole in its hull. The explosion happened some 150 nautical miles to Malta’s southeast in the early hours of Tuesday, according to sources close to Malta's military.

The photo was taken at 4:09pm on Tuesday, some 12 hours after the explosion took place, by a maritime patrol aircraft that was circling over the stricken vessel.

Last week MaltaToday revealed how Transport Malta engaged an international salvage company to draw up a plan for the stricken Russian tanker, as the vessel continued to drift in the central Mediterranean more than 50 nautical miles from Maltese shores.