Until the evening of March 2 the location of the Russian gas tanker Arctic Metagaz was known — it was sailing east of Malta. A few hours later its tracking system went dark. The Russian Transport Ministry later released footage showing the ship on fire with a large gash in its hull and said the vessel had been attacked by Ukrainian drones launched from the Libyan coast. The ministry reported all 30 crew members had been evacuated.
Italian authorities subsequently warned the unmanned tanker was drifting toward Libya and could cause a major pollution disaster. Russian officials said the ship carried about 450 tonnes of heavy fuel and 250 tonnes of diesel, along with “significant amounts of gas.” Environmental campaigners and some reports put the gas cargo at more than 60,000 tonnes and described explosions, leaking gas and visible fires on board.
Greenpeace spokesperson Natalia Gozak urged immediate, careful action to avert catastrophe. She called for efforts to bring the vessel under control, pump out its fuels and, if necessary, scuttle it in a controlled manner. Gozak warned that a spill of oil and diesel would have devastating impacts on marine and coastal ecosystems, and she emphasized the danger to salvage crews posed by the large quantities of gas that could detonate.
Gozak also drew attention to the role of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” — a network of vessels used to circumvent sanctions. She said these operations commonly rely on older, poorly maintained tankers with tracking systems switched off, often uninsured, and that at-sea ship-to-ship transfers used by the fleet increase the risk of spills.
On March 18 the leaders of Malta, Italy, Spain, Greece and Cyprus alerted European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to the serious threat to EU waters and urged activation of the EU civil protection mechanism. Three days later, on March 21, Libya’s National Oil Corporation announced it would cooperate with Italian energy company Eni to recover and tow the damaged tanker to a Libyan port, and said steps had been taken to reduce pollution risks. Italy’s Civil Protection Department warned that towing would be complex because of the large breach in the hull.
Beyond the environmental emergency, the incident raises legal and military questions if Ukraine was responsible. Alexander Lott, research professor at the Norwegian Center for the Law of the Sea, pointed out that only a few states have explicitly treated ships transporting certain oil or gas that finances a war as legitimate targets. He said that if Ukraine carried out the attack, it would align its practice with that narrower position. Lott also noted that Russia has itself attacked merchant ships and in 2023 suggested cargo vessels bound for Ukrainian ports might be carrying war materiel.
Statements by Nikolai Patrushev, an adviser to President Vladimir Putin, that Russia would deploy armed naval patrols to protect its merchant fleet and might arm vessels risk escalating the situation, Lott warned — actions that could make those ships lawful military targets. There have also been reports of Russian military personnel aboard some vessels in the shadow fleet.
Maritime-security expert Ian Ralby said attacks on tankers could become more frequent as both sides broaden their targeting of maritime traffic, drawing a parallel with attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz amid other regional tensions. Ralby argued the episode also highlights limits of sanctions, which have helped spawn a parallel trading system outside normal oversight, and he recommended stronger engagement with countries that trade with sanctioned states to make restrictions more effective, naming nations such as India, Egypt and Indonesia.
For environmental groups, the longer-term lesson is political as well as operational. Greenpeace’s Gozak said the crisis underlines global dependence on fossil fuels and on Russian supplies and argued that transitioning to renewables would reduce the strategic and ecological risks posed by shadow tankers. The situation remains fluid: authorities are racing to secure the damaged ship and contain pollution risks while states weigh the legal and security implications of attacks on commercial shipping.
This article was originally written in German.