Russian Oil Tankers U-Turn and Then Halt Near France After Storm

(Bloomberg) -- Two oil tankers hauling crude from Russia made U-turns as they sailed past France and are now at a standstill near the northern port of Cherbourg.

There’s no suggestion their unusual movements are related to aggressive sanctions that the US imposed on Russia’s oil exports earlier this month. Neither vessel was among a large number of tankers designated by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control on Jan. 10.

The Unity, capable of hauling about 730,000 barrels of crude, moored so that it can fix a small mechanical failure, according to a representative for the maritime prefecture of Manche et Mer du Nord. Vessel tracking shows that it, and another vessel called the Alfred, both turned back after they sailed past the Bay of Biscay.

The Unity had been signaling its next destination as India. It is anchored in an area assigned for ships to shelter from the storm given recent adverse whether conditions, the local representative said. The Alfred was en route for Turkey, tracking shows.

The Unity is controlled by Moscow-based Argo Tanker Group, according to the Equasis maritime database. The company said Friday it was unaware of any issues with the ship. The Alfred is listed on the website of Greece-based Capital Maritime Corp., which didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

Over the past few days storms have been triggering red weather alerts across much of western Europe.

Storm Éowyn brought record gusts of 183 kilometers (114 miles) per hour in Galway in the west of Ireland, while a second pattern, Storm Herminia caused some of the worst flooding in decades in northwest France. The UK’s Met Office said the sea in Biscay was high or very high on Monday, meaning wave heights of six to 14 meters.