New UK sanctions target Putin’s main funder of war

The UK government strikes against Russia’s two largest oil companies. On the updated sanctions list are Rosneft and Lukoil, along with a major number of shadow fleet tankers, as well as collaborating companies from China, India and the Middle East.

The additional sanctions adopted by the government in London on October 15 include Putin’s two largest oil producers.

Rosneft and Lukoil are key tools for the dictator and his war against Ukraine. The oil produced and exported by the two companies are crucial for the financing of the aggression.

“This is a huge blow for Putin’s war machine,” the UK government emphasises.

“At this critical moment for Ukraine, Europe is stepping up. Together, the UK and our allies are piling the pressure on Putin – going after his oil, gas and shadow fleet – and we will not relent until he abandons his failed war of conquest and gets serious about peace,” Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper says in a statement.

The two Russian oil companies have previously been sanctioned by the USA, Canada, Australia and Ukraine, but not by the EU.

Rosneft became the number one oil producer in Russia after it illegally seized the assets of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his company Yukos in the 2000s. The swallowing of the TNK-BP (Tyumen Oil Company) in 2013 further boosted the company’s power.

Rosneft is headed by Igor Sechin, a long-time ally of Vladimir Putin. He has been on the UK sanctions list since early 2022. He is also sanctioned by the EU and a large number of other countries, but not the USA.

Lukoil is Russia’s second biggest oil producer and the country’s largest non-state enterprise in terms of revenue.

Both Rosneft and Lukoil have major parts of their production sites in the Russian Arctic. Lukoil operates several oil fields in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug and exports large volumes through its terminals in Varandey and Murmansk.

Rosneft exports major volumes of oil from Murmansk and is in the process of developing Vostok Oil, a project it claims ultimately will be the country’s biggest ever in the Arctic.

On the updated UK sanctions list are also 44 oil tankers, all of them part of Russia’s so-called ‘shadow fleet.’ In addition come seven LNG carriers, several of which have been involved in shipments from the sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project.

The Buran, the Zarya and the Voskhod have all been involved in shipments from the banned terminal in the Gydan Peninsula. Judging from ship traffic information, the Buran loaded LNG at the terminal as late as in October.

The Iris, a fourth ship of the fleet, was included in the UK sanctions list already in 2024.

On October 15, 2025, two the newly sanctioned LNG carriers – the Clean Ocean and the Clean Planet – were both sailing in Arctic waters. The former was on its way north along the Norwegian coast, while the latter was located by the mouth of the Ura Bay, possibly awaiting a ship-to-ship transshipment by the Saam FSU.

On the list is also the Christophe de Margerie, which was previously sanctioned by the US and EU following shipments of LNG from the Arctic LNG 2.

The UK government also targets several collaborating companies from China, India and the Middle East. On the sanctions list are the Shandong Haixin Port, Shandong Jingang Port and the Shandong Baogang International Port, all of them located in Dongying, China. They have previously been accused of providing material support for Iran’s oil sector and for handling vessels carrying sanctioned oil.

On the list is also Nayara Energy Limited, the operator of India’s second-largest refinery, as well as oil traders Alghaf Marine DMCC and Wissol Commodities from the UAE.

Related stories from around the North: 

Canada: Thamesborg grounding update: Salvage experts en route; Arctic mapping context, Eye on the Arctic

Norway: Hybrid-powered electric cruise ship navigates Northwest Passage, CBC News

Russia: Beijing and Moscow tune in for more Arctic shipping, The Independent Barents Observer

United States: U.S. Coast Guard monitors Chinese ships in Arctic waters…again, Eye on the Arctic