Greek oil tankers hit in the Black Sea, possible Ukrainian involvement

Brussels – Three Greek oil tankers were hit by unidentified drones in the heart of the Black Sea. According to Reuters, the incident occurred while the vessels were en route to an oil terminal on the Russian coast, the final stop on the Kazakh Caspian Pipeline. Although not explicitly stated, suspicions point to Ukrainian involvement, given that the infrastructure had already been hit twice by Kyiv. One reason for Kyiv’s interest is that 27 per cent of the pipeline is operated by the Russian company Transneft, even though the oil it carries is Kazakh. The Italian company Eni also participates in the consortium, with a 2 per cent stake.

Two to four tankers with Kazakh oil were attacked by drones.

Two oil tankers were attacked by drones near the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal on Tuesday.

One of the tankers – Delta Harmony – is operated by the Greek company Delta Tankers and was due to load… pic.twitter.com/3IS4ePk0UM

— Levan Gudadze (@GudadzeLevan) 13 January 2026

Damage to ships

One of the most damaged vessels is believed to be the Matilda, operated by the Greek company Thenamaris. According to a spokesperson for Thenamaris contacted by Euronews, “A fire broke out on deck, but it was immediately brought under control: the damage was minor and completely repairable, and no injuries were reported. The ship, the company said, was safely removed from the area.” A significant factor is that the drones struck before the cargo ships were loaded with oil. For this reason, the damage was less severe than in similar cases. According to reports, the integrity of the vessels should not be compromised, and there are no injuries or fatalities among the crew.

⚡ Drones hit four Greek oil tankers in the Black Sea

Four tankers owned by Greek companies were attacked by drones on January 13 in the Black Sea, near the terminal of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, according to sources cited by Reuters and Bloomberg.

The vessels targeted… pic.twitter.com/ONPX1hxMlJ

— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) January 13, 2026

Eni also penalised

The location of the incident should not be underestimated. The attacks took place in the Black Sea, a few kilometres from Novorossiysk, a Russian city that is home to the Caspian Pipeline terminal. The infrastructure, capable of transporting hydrocarbons, is managed by an international consortium. The main beneficiaries of the pipeline’s revenues are the Russian state-owned company Transneft, but also Western entities such as the American companies Chevron and ExxonMobil, the British company Shell and the Italian company Eni. The drone attack mainly penalises these companies, which have no way of transporting their crude oil out of the Black Sea basin.

The precedents and the Kazakh oil crisis

This is not the first time that the Russian terminal has been targeted, nor is it the first time that the entire Transcaucasian infrastructure has been targeted. In February, a pumping station in Russian territory was hit by UAV drones, reducing the flow of hydrocarbons by 30 per cent. In November, however, a Ukrainian drone damaged one of the three main moorings. These explosions continue to affect the infrastructure, causing a collapse in Kazakh oil production: -35 per cent since the beginning of the year compared to the December average. Suspicions of Ukrainian involvement are not unfounded, although no comments have been received from the Ukrainian authorities so far.