Russian tanker captain charged over $500M Black Sea pollution damage

This was reported by the Prosecutor General's Office.

According to the investigation, in December 2024, a Russian oil tanker, under the command of a captain who is a citizen of the Russian Federation, passed through Ukraine’s territorial waters, transporting four tons of M-100 fuel oil from Volgograd to the port of Kavkaz.

The suspect, ignoring navigation rules, failed to consider the weather conditions in the Azov and Black Seas and the Kerch Strait, which led to the ship’s accident.

As a result of mechanical damage to the vessel, 1,500 tons of fuel oil leaked into Ukraine’s internal and territorial waters. This caused serious sea pollution, damaged marine life, and led to state losses exceeding UAH 20 billion.

The captain of the Russian tanker is now officially suspected of causing sea pollution with serious consequences.

• To recall, on December 15, 2024, two Russian tankers, "Volgoneft-212" and "Volgoneft-239", carrying fuel oil, split in half in the Kerch Strait.
• According to Greenpeace, the damage to the Russian tankers in the Kerch Strait, which links the Black and Azov Seas, may have released up to 4,300 tons of petroleum products into the water.