Ethera

The 'Ethera' has not been allowed to leave the port of Zeebrugge. The commercial court has declared the claim of the owner and the crew unfounded. The ship was linked to the Russian shadow fleet and is on the European Union's sanctions list. It belongs to the network of companies linked to Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, son of a former top advisor to the now deceased Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The public prosecutor's office is still conducting an investigation into the ship, which was boarded by the Belgian Army on the night of Feb 28, brought to the port of Zeebrugge and remained there while an investigation was ongoing. The ship's owner and crew had requested permission to leave the port, a provisional measure. According to them, the actions of the Belgian authorities were in violation of international regulations. A penalty payment of 10,000 euros per day was requested for each day the 'Ethera' must remain in the port of Zeebrugge. The Ghent Commercial Court (Brugge division) ruled that the request from the owner and the crew could not be regarded as a provisional measure: "Once the ship has left the port, it will head out to the open sea via territorial waters and never return. That would nullify the decision of the Belgian State," it stated. The judicial seizure was, however, lifted in the meantime at the request of the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office. In practice, that decision changed nothing, as the ship remained under administrative seizure. A security deposit of 10,020,000 euros was imposed; and the ship may only leave the port once this has been paid and a new inspection has taken place. For the time being, the crew was also still on board. In response, the owner of the 'Ethera' has summoned the Belgian State to court, but no decision has been reached yet. The FPS Mobility and Transport and DG Shipping further established that the ship was sailing under a false flag and that there were invalid or forged certificates on board. It turned out that the 'Ethera' had not been registered in any ship register since Aug 22, 2025. The unloaded tanker was en route from Morocco to St. Petersburg, Russia.

The judicial seizure of the 'Ethera', which remained stationary in Zeebrugge as of March 18, has been lifted at the request of the Federal Prosecutor's Office. The ship was linked to the Russian shadow fleet and is on the European Union's sanctions list. According to the Federal Prosecutor's Office, the investigation into the tanker is in its final phase. The tanker appeared to be sailing under the flag of Guinea, but during the inspections on board, it turned out that it was in all likelihood a false flag, and ship documents were found that were suspected of being faked. The ship was subsequently judicially seized. In addition to the findings of potentially forged certificates at the time of boarding, about 40 defiencies were found. The captain and an engineer have since been questioned as suspects by the maritime police and the Directorate-General for Shipping. Furthermore, various documents and data carriers were seized. The criminal preliminary investigation was in its final phase. The findings from that investigation will be transferred to the Directorate-General for Shipping, which will continue the procedure. based among other things on the results of the criminal investigation.

The owner of the 'Ethera', was taking legal action against the Belgian state over a €10 million bond imposed on the vessel. The tanker was intercepted on 1 March 1 by the Belgian army during the Operation Blue Intruder and has since been held in the port of Zeebrugge. The vessel is linked to Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet”. Following an inspection, officials identified 45 deficiencies on board. These included false certificates linked to the ship sailing under a Guinean flag, as well as several technical faults. Belgian authorities subsequently imposed a bond of €10,020,000. The tanker will only be allowed to leave port once the bond is paid and a new inspection has confirmed the vessel complied with maritime rules. However, the owner has now issued a legal summons against Belgium, reportedly arguing that the boarding operation was unlawful and that the vessel should be released. Belgian justice officials said the move was not unexpected given the large financial stakes involved. The owner was likely exploring all legal options to avoid paying the bond. The 'Ethera' remained under judicial seizure in Zeebrugge while the case proceeded.

Belgium announced on March 3, that it has completed its inspection of the 'Ethera'. It was confirmed that the vessel was sailing under a false flag, without proper certificates, and with multiple safety violations. The vessel was acquired in 2024 by the son of one of Iran’s top advisors to the Supreme Leader. The father was reported to have been killed in the raids on Iran on March 1, as well as Iran’s Supreme Leader. The USA had sanctioned the tanker in July 2025 for its link to Iran and also said it was being used to transport Russian oil in violation of sanctions. Belgium’s ministers of Justice and Mobility reported that they confirmed the ship did not have a valid registration or certificates. Inspectors found a total of 45 violations, including technical defaults with the ship. The tanker has been ordered to pay a fine of €10,020,000. Further, the ship will remain under detention until the owner has demonstrated that it secured a flag state and has proper certificates. The ship will also have to undergo a further inspection to confirm that the safety deficiencies have been corrected. There was a crew of 21 aboard the ship, consisting of a Russian captain, seven officers, including three from India, three from Georgia, and one from Indonesia, and 13 crew members, all from India. The crew has been ordered to remain aboard the vessel until it is cleared to depart. The seizure was part of Belgium’s efforts to enforce European sanctions and protect the North Sea. The length of the detention depended on the ship’s owner. The tanker will have to remain in Zeebrugge until the fine was paid and the next inspection confirmed compliance.

The investigation into the 'Ethera' in Zeebrugge was still ongoing. The vessel may be part of the Russian shadow fleet. Various services, including the maritime police, were still conducting inspections. A technical check was being conducted to determine whether the tanker met all the requirements for sailing in the Belgian part of the North Sea. The 21 crew members were also being checked. They have been ordered to remain on board. They were not allowed to leave the ship. Should they leave the ship, the Immigration Office would have to be contacted, because they did not have the necessary papers to be suspected of being in the country. What happens to the ship and its crew depended on the number of violations. The fine for sailing under a false flag was 10 million euros. Should it be determined that the 10 million fine is too high, then the ship can actually be abandoned. And then, of course, it is up to the Belgian authorities to decide what to do with the ship. But according to my information, the ship was still in good condition, and is therefore worth more than the fine. So, in that sense, once the fine is paid, it was likely to be released.

In a coordinated strike for maritime security, the Belgian Armed Forces, with strategic support from French Defence, have successfully boarded and intercepted the 'Ethera'. The vessel, belonging to Russia's "shadow fleet," was operating under a web of sanctions and flags of convenience to bypass international oil price caps. The Operation was codenamed "Operation Blue Intruder". The operation involved 93 Belgian soldiers and two French helicopters. Around midnight local time, the troops swooped down on the product tanker, while it was sailing along the coast on a voyage from Morocco. The status said it was “awaiting orders” although it was believed to be heading toward the Russian oil terminals in the Baltic. The UK initially sanctioned the vessel’s operator, a company based in Dubai with links to Iran, in 2024 for the company’s efforts at moving Russian oil and further sanctioned the vessel in 2026. The European Union sanctioned the tanker in 2025. The USA included the vessel as part of a broad effort to go after one of the elites of Iran in July 2025. The 'Ethera' is operated by a company linked to the network controlled by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of Ali Shamkhani, a top political advisor to the Supreme Leader of Iran. Israel lists Ali Shamkhani among those killed on Feb 28 in the first hours of the “Roaring Lion” operation against Iran. Hossein is reported to have a fleet of approximately 40 tankers and containers and a web of companies that the Americans said transport oil and petroleum products from Iran and Russia, as well as other cargo, to buyers around the world, generating tens of billions of dollars in profit. The 'Ethera' has been sanctioned by the EU, US (OFAC), and UK. It is linked to Emirati-based Fractal Marine DMCC, a key operator in eluding global energy sanctions. The tanker has been diverted from its original course and was escorted into the Port of Zeebrugge on March 1, 2026, where it was officially seized by authorities after its arrival in port at around 8 a.m.. It was expected to be fined up to €10 million. The length of the detention was uncertain until the investigation was completed. The ship had a crew of 21 on board. Photos and video: https://x.com/PascalHeyman/status/2027905106637685182 https://x.com/i/status/2028041510885654553

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At least two tankers carrying gasoline-making components have dropped anchor off New York for nearly a week, unable to discharge their cargoes in the latest sign that storage for the fuel was running out. Several tankers with gasoline have also been diverted from the New York region to Florida and the U.S. Gulf Coast in recent days. The "Energy Progress" with a cargo of reformate from Aliaga, has been waiting outside New York since June 28, 2016. The "Emerald Shiner", carrying a cargo of alkylite from Sikka, has been anchored off the New York Coast since June 28. Furthermore, at least three cargoes of gasoline from Europe, which heavily relies on exports to the U.S. East Coast, have been diverted in recent days from New York Harbor to Florida and the U.S. Gulf Coast, ship tracking showed. Those include the "Energy Patriot", "Seasalvia" and "Ance". The excess in the midst of summer demand for the motor fuel casts a shadow of the profitability of refineries, and thus their demand for crude oil over the coming months. Global gasoline stocks have risen steadily in recent months as refiners ran at full steam on expectations of strong demand this summer, particularly in the United States and Asia. With dropping profits from producing gasoline, refiners are increasingly shifting to making diesel and jet fuel.