LNG tankers divert from UK amid Russia links, discontent at terminal

Two Cyprus-flagged LNG tankers that were bound for the UK's Isle of Grain terminal have changed course amid discontent among port workers over their Russian cargoes, a trade union representative said March 4.

It comes days after the UK banned vessels on March 1 that are Russian-owned, operated, controlled, chartered, registered or flagged from UK ports, but not Russian cargoes.

Both vessels, Boris Vilkitsky and Fedor Litke, are Cyprus flagged but had come from the north Russian port of Sabetta, data from Platts cFlow trade-flow analytics software showed. Fedor Litke is currently off the coast of Norway and heading south and Boris Vilkitsky is in the English Channel, cFlow showed.

Workers at the Isle of Grain terminal were unhappy about a Russian cargo being able to dock and the trade union Unison put pressure on National Grid, which owns and operates Grain LNG through National Grid Ventures, a spokesperson for Unison told S&P Global.

This follows international condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"Both tankers now appear to have been diverted away from the Isle of Grain. This will come as a relief to the workers at the terminal," Unison head of energy Matt Lay said in an emailed statement.

However, the current legislation, which forbids Russia-linked vessels and not Russian cargoes from arriving in the UK, is a point of concern, Lay said. "With so many ships having flags of convenience this is a hollow gesture. The government must act immediately to stop Russian goods continuing to arrive in the UK under the cover of another country," he added.

A representative for the UK transport department said they could not comment on individual ships but that the "guidance is clear" over what sort of Russian connections preclude a ship from docking in the UK and that this did not affect cargoes.

National Grid was unavailable for immediate comment.

LNG prices in the region have risen sharply in recent days. S&P Global assessed LNG NWE DES at $44.20/MMBtu March 3, up from $28.99/MMBtu, when Russia invaded Ukraine, and up from an average of $27.44/MMBtu in 2022 so far.