Drones hit two tankers in Black Sea as Kazakh oil production plummets, managers say

MOSCOW/ATHENS/LONDON Jan 13 (Reuters) – Two oil tankers, including one chartered by U.S. oil giant Chevron, were hit by drones in the Black Sea on Tuesday as they were heading towards a terminal on the Russian coast, relevant companies said.

Both headed for the Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka terminal, the loading point for about 80% of Kazakh oil and some Russian crude shipped to international markets, according to eight sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Chevron said of its chartered tanker: “All crew are safe and the ship is in stable condition. It is heading to a safe port and we are coordinating with the ship operator and relevant authorities.”

The attacks came as Kazakhstan’s production contracted in early January as the U.S. oil majors that dominate the oil sector struggled to ship crude through Russia due to infrastructure damage caused by winter storms and an earlier Ukrainian drone strike.

Kiev is targeting Russian energy infrastructure to pressure Moscow to end its war in Ukraine. But it was not immediately clear who was behind Tuesday’s tanker attacks.

The Ukrainian government did not comment on the attacks. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium, which operates the terminal where tankers will carry cargo, declined to comment.

Shareholders in CPC’s ⁠1,500-kilometer (930-mile) pipeline include Kazakhstan’s state-owned oil company KazMunayGas, Russia’s Lukoil, and units of US oil giants Chevron and ExxonMobil.

KAZAKH’S OIL AND GAS PRODUCTION DECREASED BY 35%

The Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka terminal was previously attacked on November 29, when a Ukrainian drone crashed into one of CPC’s three main moorings at the facility, located near the port of Novorossiysk.

Oil and gas condensate production in Kazakhstan fell by 35% between January 1 and January 12 compared to the December average, a source familiar with the data told Reuters, adding that the decline was mainly due to export restrictions through the terminal.

Kazakhstan’s energy ministry said on Tuesday that CPC continues to export oil through single bonding.

TANKER STRIKE INCREASED INSURANCE COSTS

War insurance costs for ships heading to the Black Sea after the attacks nearly doubled on Tuesday, five industry sources said.

Russian terminals on the Black Sea handle more than 2% of global crude oil. ‌The waters shared by Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania and Türkiye, as well as Russia and Ukraine, are of vital importance in terms of grain transportation.

Delta Harmony, one of the tankers attacked on Tuesday, is operated by Delta Tankers of Greece, according to LSEG data. According to sources, Kazakh oil was expected to be loaded from Tengizchevroil, a unit of US oil giant Chevron.

Delta Tankers later confirmed it was investigating a security incident on board Delta Harmony, which was hit by a shell at 05:12 GMT while the ship was off Novorossiysk.

The company said all crew members were safe, adding that a short-lived fire was extinguished and there were no reports of marine pollution.

After the attack, the ship left the area under its own power.

Delta Tankers said a second ship under its management, the Delta Supreme, was unaffected, denying earlier indications from industry and trade sources that it had also been hit.

Another ship, Matilda, chartered by a subsidiary of KazMunayGas (KMG) and operated by Greece’s Thenamaris, was expected to load Kazakh oil from Karachaganak when it was hit, the sources added.

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy confirmed on Tuesday evening that Matilda and Delta Harmony were attacked by drones.

A Thenamaris official said Matilda was shot down by two drones while waiting in ballast condition 30 miles (48 km) from CPC’s anchorages. KMG also confirmed the attack.

“There were no injuries and according to the initial assessment, there was minor damage to the ship’s deck structures and this damage is fully repairable. The seaworthy ship is currently moving away from the area,” said the Thenamaris official.

Two sources from maritime security said that a fire broke out on the Matilda ship and was extinguished in a short time.

A fourth ship, Freud, operated by Greece’s TMS, was also initially believed to have been attacked. However, TMS later denied that he had been shot.

(Reporting by Reuters in Moscow, Renee Maltezou and Yannis Souliotis in Athens and Jonathan Saul in London; Editing by Louise Heavens, Jan Harvey, Guy Faulconbridge and Joe Bavier)