Three Greek-managed oil tankers were struck by unidentified drones in the Black Sea on Tuesday while en route to load Kazakh crude at Russia’s Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka terminal, the main export point for Kazakhstan’s oil, sources told Reuters.
The incidents involved two Suezmax tankers and one Aframax vessel: the Delta Harmony and Delta Supreme, both managed by Greece’s Delta Tankers, and the Matilda, managed by Greece’s Thenamaris and chartered by a subsidiary of Kazakhstan’s state-owned KazMunayGas.
Thenamaris confirmed that Matilda was hit by two drones while waiting in ballast condition about 30 miles (48 km) off the terminal’s moorings. The company reported no injuries, minor damage to deck structures that is fully repairable, and said the ship remains seaworthy and is sailing away from the area. Maritime security sources said a fire broke out on Matilda but was quickly extinguished.
Chevron, which chartered one of the vessels, said it was aware of the incidents involving inbound tankers to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) facilities. “All crew are safe, and the vessel remains stable. It is proceeding to a safe port, and we are coordinating with the ship operator and relevant authorities,” the company stated.
The CPC terminal, which handles around 80% of Kazakh crude exports via a 1,500-km pipeline involving shareholders such as KazMunayGas, Russia’s Lukoil, and units of U.S. majors Chevron and ExxonMobil, has been operating with reduced capacity since a Ukrainian drone attack on November 29, 2025, damaged one of its three main moorings. A follow-up Reuters report on December 29 noted that only one mooring remained functional in late December, contributing to export bottlenecks.
Kazakhstan’s energy ministry said Tuesday that CPC continues to export oil via the remaining mooring. However, oil and gas condensate output in the country plunged 35% between January 1 and January 12 compared to December’s average, a source familiar with the data told Reuters, primarily due to these ongoing export constraints.
Ukraine’s government did not comment on the tanker strikes, and it was not immediately clear who was responsible. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium declined to comment.
The attacks could raise shipping and insurance costs for vessels loading at Russian Black Sea terminals, which account for more than 2% of global crude supply.
A fourth tanker, the Freud managed by Greece’s TMS, was initially thought to have been targeted but the company later denied any hit.
