Sweden Boards and Detains Falsely-Flagged Tanker off Trelleborg

Sweden's coast guard has boarded and detained a Russia-facing shadow fleet tanker in the Baltic, the latest in a growing campaign of Nordic/European interventions to impede a vast fleet of tankers that evade Western sanctions and operate outside of international regulatory structures.

The vessel in question is a sanctioned tanker with IMO number 9430272, currently operating under the name Jin Hui (ex names Yi Bao, Celcius Roskilde). While she claims Syrian registration, her Equasis record indicates that this is false, as is increasingly common in the shadow fleet.

She was reported sold to undisclosed interests in December 2025. The former owner shared a Hong Kong letterbox address with a sanctioned petchem trading company linked to Iran (among many other firms).

As of Sunday, Jin Rui was anchored in the Baltic off Trelleborg, Sweden.

"The vessel is suspected of being part of the Russian shadow fleet and for sailing under false flag. There are also concerns regarding insufficient seaworthiness and insurance," said Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in a statement. "The vessel is included on the sanctions lists of the EU, the UK and Ukraine. We protect our waters."

Jin Hui has a recent history of PSC issues. At her last inspection, conducted last month in Turkey, port state control boarded Jin Hui and identified eight deficiencies, including issues with her oil record book, fire alarms, fire doors, auxiliary engine and her voyage planning.

AIS data shows that Jin Hui has recently visited a wide diversity of jurisdictions, from South America to Russia to the Mediterranean and India, including extensive trading between and among regional ports. The pattern indicates a high likelihood of commercial voyages serving charterers outside Russia, despite sanctions.