Panama to cancel flags on four US-sanctioned LNG vessels

By Elida Moreno and Marianna Parraga

Panama's Maritime Authority said on Wednesday it has begun a process to cancel flag registrations on four LNG vessels sanctioned by the United States over their links with Russian gas producer Novatek.

The vessels - North Air, North Mountain, North Way and North Sky - are managed by UAE-registered White Fox Ship Management.

The four switched to Panama's flag registry earlier this year from Singapore, according to maritime database Equasis.

The targeted vessels transferred LNG from Russia's Yamal and Arctic LNG 2 projects as part of a lease agreement with Novatek and its UAE-based affiliate New Transshipment FZE, the State Department said.

White Fox Ship Management was sanctioned by Washington in August.

The State Department said last week that Russian firms had sought to obtain secondhand LNG tankers through third-country front companies like White Fox to circumvent U.S. sanctions and revitalize Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project.

The United States has imposed several rounds of sanctions on companies supporting Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project, including its developer Novatek, and its LNG shipments. The project had been due to become Russia's largest LNG plant with eventual output of 19.8 million metric tons per year.

The sanctions have succeeded in blocking the LNG project and making it difficult for potential buyers to accept cargoes, said sanction experts.

The tankers had previously been identified as part of Russia's dark tanker fleet, according to media reports quoted by the authority.