Indonesian port becomes hub for transshipment of Russian oil products

The Indonesian port of Karimun has become the largest transshipment point for Russian oil products.

Source: Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service

Quote: "The Indonesian port of Karimun became the largest transshipment point for Russian oil in 2025. Meanwhile, the terminal's operation is not controlled by the Indonesian authorities – it is located in a free trade zone and outside the country's jurisdiction"

Details: Reports indicate that 590,000 tonnes of fuel oil, about 217,000 tonnes of diesel fuel and 50,000 tonnes of oil have been exported through Karimun since the beginning of 2025.

In the face of Western sanctions, Russia is reported to be looking for alternative routes to export oil and oil products. Transshipment through Karimun allows Russian companies to circumvent these sanctions.

"In the port, Russian oil products are mixed with oil products from other countries of origin," Foreign Intelligence Service noted. "After that, the energy is considered Indonesian and Western sanctions are not applied to it. Subsequently, the oil products are re-exported to Singapore, Malaysia and China."

Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service reported that 590,000 tonnes of fuel oil have been exported through Karimun from the port of Ust-Luga (Russia) since the beginning of 2025. By comparison, around 100,000 tonnes were shipped via this route during January-March 2024.

In addition, this year, the port handled about 217,000 tonnes of diesel fuel and 50,000 tonnes of crude oil from Russia for the first time.

"At least three cargoes on tankers under EU and UK sanctions arrived at Karimun in March-April 2025," Ukrainian intelligence said. "The intermediaries in the trade of sanctioned goods are little-known trading firms that often change their names before they arrive at their final destinations."

Background:

• Earlier reports indicated that Russia's Arctic oil exports to China were growing rapidly in April, facilitated by ship-to-ship (STS) transshipment, a method used to circumvent US sanctions.
• To minimise risks, traders have begun to actively use STS transshipment in international waters off the coasts of Malaysia and Singapore. The oil is transshipped to VLCC tankers, which are not on the sanctions list, and then sent to Chinese ports.
• It was also reported that in the third year of its war against Ukraine, Russia earned US$253.8 billion from fossil fuel exports, with part of the revenue coming indirectly from Western countries despite existing sanctions.
• Since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, Russia has received a total of €847 billion in revenue from fossil fuel sales. This amount is also more than the US$211 billion that the Pentagon estimates Russia spent on the war from 2022 to 2024.
• Earlier, it was also reported that the European Union is considering imposing sanctions against the Dubai-based trading arm of Russian oil giant Lukoil.
• Litasco Middle East DMCC, based in Dubai, is the target of these potential sanctions. The sanctions, outlined in documents obtained by Bloomberg, are part of a broader effort to clamp down on the fleet of unregulated tankers transporting Russian oil. Litasco Middle East plays a role in the expansion of this fleet.

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