Zombie Tankers Emerge In Venezuelan Oil Trade

An increasing number of “zombie” or “phantom” oil tankers—vessels that assume the identities of scrapped ships—have emerged off Venezuela’s coast, allowing dark fleet operators to circumvent U.S. trade restrictions on global oil transport. 

According to a Bloomberg report, one of these zombie tankers was recently spotted off the waters of Malaysia after a two-month voyage from Venezuela, raising many red flags. 

The report describes how dark fleet operators transform tankers into floating zombies:

The vessel raised some red flags: it was 32 years old, past the age at which it would normally have been scrapped, and it was sailing under the flag of Comoros, a popular flag of convenience that makes ships harder to monitor.

For all intents and purposes, though, it seemed like any other so-called dark fleet tanker that carries barrels of sometimes sanctioned oil from producers like Russia, Iran and Venezuela. Except it wasn’t.

The real Varada, which wasn’t sanctioned, had actually been demolished in Bangladesh in 2017. This vessel was what’s known as a zombie or phantom ship, which take on the identities of scrapped tankers to appear legitimate and avoid scrutiny from authorities in the U.S. and elsewhere.

Bloomberg investigators obtained ship-tracking data and satellite imagery showing that at least four zombie tankers have been involved in the Venezuelan oil trade with Asia. At the same time, the Trump administration ramped up maximum pressure, forcing Western oil firms to withdraw from the country. 

Last week, John Hurley, a hedge fund veteran who’s been nominated to lead the Treasury Department’s terrorism and financial intelligence arm, warned about “consequences” for any nation that purchases Venezuelan oil.

Hurley would enforce President Trump’s executive order, which could impose 25% tariffs on countries that purchase crude from Venezuela.

“President Trump is sending a clear message that access to our economy is a privilege, not a right, and countries importing Venezuelan oil will face consequences,” Hurley wrote in responses to questions from the U.S. Senate Banking Committee. 

Bloomberg first reported zombie tankers in September and November last year, and maritime intelligence analysts have been paying attention.

“Zombie ships are the third way,” Starboard analyst Mark Douglas said, adding, ”The thinking is like: ‘I can’t afford to run my own system, so I’ll use another ship’s identity to get that oil from point A to point B.’”

Using a dark fleet network and zombie tankers, China has quietly become the largest buyer of Venezuelan oil. Perhaps tariffs alone will fall short—maybe Hurley’s strategy will involve slapping Beijing in the face with sanctions.