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LSEG data shows that a tanker subject to US sanctions discharges oil in a Chinese port

Shipping data from LSEG Eikon on Thursday showed that a tanker under the new U.S. Sanctions is discharging Russian Oil at a port operated in East China by Shandong Port Group.

This is the first tanker to be discharged in Shandong Province since the announcement of sanctions last week. Shandong is home to many independent Chinese refineries, which have been major importers of Russian crude oil.

Those in the industry will closely monitor the implementation of the new measures.

Traders said that the sanctions include a grace-period exempting cargoes unloaded and loaded before January 10 but still included a period of exemption for those loaded before then. However, some shipments were halted as traders assessed the risks.

After normal business hours, Shandong Port Group is not available to comment.

Mermar, a crude oil tanker with Panamanian flag, docked at Longkou Port in Yantai on Wednesday. The LSEG data indicated that it had been floating since Saturday.

The data showed that the Aframax tanker also carried 80,000 metric tonnes (600,000 barrels), Russian ESPO blend crude oil. It was loaded from Kozmino Port on Russia's East Coast on January 6.

The Mermar was one of 183 ships that the Biden administration designated on Friday, in an announcement which disrupted the supply from the No. 2 producer worldwide to China and India. The Mermar was among 183 ships designated by the Biden administration on Friday in an announcement that disrupted supply from the world's No.

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control reported that the Mermar made a port stop in a Russian Port where oil consistently trades well above the $60 price cap set by the West as a way to reduce Russia's oil revenue.

The tanker is now considered part of the shadow fleet, which Russia has been using to avoid sanctions. The new measures also place restrictions on its registered owner, Merluza Group.

According to the shipping data, the vessel is managed by Ocean Anemone Shipmanagement based in Hong Kong and insured by Balance Insurance of Russia. Ocean Anemone Shipmanagement could not be reached. Balance Insurance did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to data viewed by, the vessel was insured with New Zealand's Maritime Mutual up until May 2025 but switched insurers in November 2024.

Before the U.S. announcement of sanctions, Shandong Port Group banned U.S. sanctioned oil tankers from calling in its ports.

(source: Reuters)