Greek-Owned Grain Ship Catches Fire After Drone Attack Near Novorossiysk

A Greek-owned bulk carrier caught fire in the Black Sea after being struck by five drones near the Russian port of Novorossiysk, Greek newspaper Proto Thema reported.

The Liberia-flagged Anna S was attacked on Monday about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Novorossiysk while sailing to the port to load grain, the newspaper said.

All 21 crew members — 20 Filipino sailors and a Romanian captain — were unharmed. The vessel, owned by Neptune Tradebulk Inc., was almost completely burned out, Proto Thema reported. It was unclear whether it remained afloat.

The attack was the second involving a Greek-owned vessel near Novorossiysk within 24 hours.

The tanker Skiros was attacked in the Black Sea on Sunday after loading Russian oil at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s terminal. Greek television channel Skai reported that a Ukrainian drone struck the vessel.

The Financial Times reported last month that the United States had asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in late July to halt attacks on tankers near Novorossiysk to avoid disrupting shipments of Kazakh oil through the CPC.

Zelensky agreed not to target vessels provided they were not under Ukrainian sanctions and were not carrying Russian cargo, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Drone attacks repeatedly disrupted CPC operations in July and forced Kazakhstan to reduce oil production. The consortium considered suspending operations in late July because of safety and environmental concerns after at least eight tankers were struck.

CPC exports averaged about 1.3 million barrels per day in July, down 300,000 barrels per day from June and 600,000 from May, according to data provider Kpler. Russian crude accounts for about 5% to 10% of CPC exports, with most of the oil coming from Kazakhstan.