On Tuesday 28 October 2025, the Russian oil tanker Komander—an Aframax/Suezmax unit built in 2004—became temporarily grounded in the Suez Canal following an engine failure. The incident occurred at 12:30 p.m. local time in the single-lane section between kilometre markers 47 and 48, just south of the Al Salam Bridge, as the vessel was sailing at the end of the southbound convoy.
The Komander was carrying around 80,000 tonnes, equivalent to one million barrels, of Russian crude oil from Murmansk bound for China. According to the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), a sudden engine malfunction caused the vessel to drift sideways and run aground on the canal bank. The Egyptian authority dispatched five tugboats—Mohamed Bashir, Mosaed 4, Port Said 3, Suez 1 and Nabil El-Hilali—which successfully completed the refloating operation in about thirty minutes.
The ship was then towed by the tug Ezzat Adel to the Great Bitter Lakes area, where it was secured. No injuries, structural damage or oil spills were reported. Maritime traffic resumed shortly after the incident. Over the course of the day, a total of 34 vessels transited the canal, carrying around 1.4 million tonnes of cargo, although about twenty northbound ships experienced delays of several hours.
SCA chairman Osama Rabie stated that the episode demonstrates the Authority’s ability to handle emergencies swiftly and efficiently, thanks to specialised staff and modern rescue equipment. In recent years, the SCA has strengthened its tugboat fleet—particularly after the 2021 Ever Given blockage—by building ten new units with 90-tonne bollard pull capacity.
However, the Komander incident also brings renewed attention to the growing role of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet: a network of ageing, second-hand tankers with frequently changing identities, used to transport oil subject to international sanctions. The Komander itself is a telling example: over the past three years it has changed flags at least five times—including Liberia, Panama, Comoros and finally the Russian Federation—and operated under various names, from Heracles to Krishna 1, Prudence and now Komander.
The vessel’s registered owner is Yo Shui Marine Limited, based in Hong Kong, while technical management is handled by First Skylines LLC / Amsha Maritime in India. European, US and UK authorities have listed the ship under their respective sanctions regimes between December 2024 and July 2025 for transporting Russian oil in violation of price caps and transparency regulations.
The Komander is part of a parallel fleet of hundreds of tankers known for high-risk operating practices, such as switching off AIS tracking, ship-to-ship transfers in international waters and uncertain insurance coverage. According to international estimates, the Russian shadow fleet grew from fewer than one hundred vessels in 2022 to between 300 and 600 by early 2025, with an average age of 20 to 25 years—well above the global average of 13.
