Russia’s Ingosstrakh announced on Friday that it might challenge UK sanctions in court and is seeking clarification on the measures imposed by the British government on Thursday.
Ingosstrakh, which provides services including ship insurance to Russian oil exporters, was added to the list of designated Russian entities by the UK’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI).
“The reasons pertaining to the OFSI sanctions upon Ingosstrakh remain unclear to us since Ingosstrakh operates in strict compliance with all applicable legislation and follows all due compliance procedures,” the company told Reuters via email.
“We shall seek clarification with the possibility of legally contesting them.”
On the same day, Britain also imposed sanctions on four vessels in Russia’s so-called shadow fleet to “ramp up economic pressure” on Moscow.
According to estimates from a Group of Seven (G7) member seen by Reuters, sanctions have cost Russia at least $100 billion in lost oil revenues and led to the confiscation of $280 billion in central bank assets.
Despite these sanctions, Russian oil exporters are charging higher prices in major market India than at any time since the war in Ukraine began.
A growing number of shippers and intermediaries participating in the trade have weakened the impact of Western sanctions on Moscow, Reuters reported on Friday.
Malin Hogberg, director of corporate legal with the Western ship insurer Swedish Club, told Reuters, “The designation of Ingosstrakh is unlikely to deter operators from transporting Russian oil in itself as those using Ingosstrakh to insure their liabilities… have already decided to operate without an insurer within G7 jurisdiction.”
Hogberg, who also chairs the sanctions committee of the International Group association of top ship insurers, added, “The potential effect lies in whether, e.g., Indian authorities will reconsider their stance on accepting vessels insured by a freshly sanctioned insurer into their ports.”
An estimated 850 oil tankers form the shadow fleet transporting oil from countries such as Iran, Venezuela, and Russia, which face multiple restrictions on their oil exports.