Owner of oil tanker damaged near Senegal says it is ceasing all Russian operations

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LONDON, Dec 2 (Reuters) – Besiktas Shipping, the Turkish owner of an oil tanker that was damaged near Senegal’s coast last week after being hit by four external explosions, said on Tuesday that it was ceasing all shipping operations involving Russian interests.

The vessel, Mersin, was at anchor near Dakar when the four blasts occurred on November 27, resulting in seawater entering the engine room. The cause of the explosions was not clear.

In a statement, Besiktas Shipping said it was ceasing all operations with Russia immediately and that it would no longer take any Russia-related voyages.

“Throughout our operations, we have strictly adhered to all international sanctions regimes, maintaining full compliance with the G7/EU Price Cap mechanism and all relevant trade restrictions,” it said.

“However, the security situation in the region has escalated considerably. After a thorough assessment, we have concluded that the risks posed to our vessels and crew have become untenable,” it added.

“As the safety of our personnel and assets is our highest priority, we are halting all such operations.”

The blasts came a day  before  Ukrainian naval drones hit two sanctioned tankers in the Black Sea, near Turkey’s coast, as they headed to a Russian port to load oil, a  Ukrainian official said on Saturday.

Another Russian-flagged tanker loaded with sunflower oil reported a drone attack off the Turkish coast on Tuesday.

Ukraine denied any involvement in the latest attack, but a Turkish official said “necessary messages” were conveyed to all relevant parties, including Ukrainian authorities.

Istanbul-based Besiktas Shipping is among the biggest tanker owners in Turkey with 29 tankers in its fleet, according to its website. 

(Reporting by Enes Tunagur; Writing by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Sharon Singleton)