Russia Tanker Reaches Venezuela After Earlier Ship’s Encounter with U.S. Warship

Russian Naphtha Arrivals in Venezuela

A tanker loaded with Russian naphtha has berthed at Venezuela’s Jose terminal, four days after reports that a U.S. warship intersected the route of another ship that also delivered energy commodities to the South American country.

Russia-flagged medium range tanker Vasily Lanovoy (IMO 9621601) was laden with about 300,000 barrels of the light product from Ust Luga, used as a diluent in Venezuela to thin highly viscous Orinoco crude.

The tanker is sanctioned by the U.S., EU and UK. It arrived at Jose terminal on November 23. The course to Venezuela was regular with no unusual sailing patterns, unlike the other tanker that reportedly had the warship positioned in its path.

The Seahorse Interception

That Russian tanker, Seahorse (IMO 9266750), also delivered diluent to Venezuela. Its route was disrupted by a U.S. warship as it sailed back from Cuba last week, according to Bloomberg.

The Cameroon-flagged, also-sanctioned Seahorse discharged its Russia-origin naphtha cargo at the Jose terminal on October 27, then sailed to Cuba’s Matanzas port, arriving November 6.

Bloomberg reported that as Seahorse returned to Venezuela, a U.S. destroyer, the USS Stockdale, positioned itself in the vessel’s path, forcing it to abruptly change course several times.

This was reflected in Seahorse’s irregular sailing pattern between November 14–21, showing multiple course changes. The movements mirrored its pattern between October 15–22, when sailing laden into the Caribbean before reaching Venezuelan territorial waters to deliver its naphtha cargo.

The USS Stockdale is one of more than a dozen U.S. warships converging in the region amid an intensifying military campaign targeting drug trafficking allegedly tied to Venezuela.

Growing Geopolitical and Compliance Risk

The Seahorse event raises questions about whether the U.S. will act to curtail the delivery of shipments to Venezuela from Russia as geopolitical tensions with the two countries ratchet up.

PDVSA, the national oil company, turned to Russia in 2025 for diluent after U.S. shipments stopped. The U.S. was a key supplier through 2024. Before that, Iran provided diluent. Venezuela has imported three times as much Russian naphtha this year as it did in all of last year, according to data from commodities-tracking firm Vortexa.

The Seahorse and Vasily Lanaroy shipments were the 17^th and 18^th naphtha cargoes delivered to Jose terminal or Amuay Bay this year, according to Vortexa. There is a refinery at Amuay Bay where naphtha may be used for feedstock.

The incident underscores uncertainty over whether U.S. military forces will intervene in commercial maritime traffic tied to Venezuela (and specifically Russia) amid the largest regional military buildup since the late 1980s, when Panama’s Manuel Noriega was removed from power.

Russian state entities remain deeply embedded in oil ventures with PDVSA, in addition to marketing Venezuelan crude through loan-for-offtake arrangements.

Seahorse is currently sailing for Venezuela, and Vasily Lanovoy arrived without incident. Whether further interdictions occur involving sanctioned, Russia-linked tankers will be closely watched.

Both tankers were flagged multiple times by Windward for high-risk behaviors before they were sanctioned. In addition to calls in Venezuela and Cuba, Seahorse recorded multiple AIS gaps, dark activity, and ship-to-ship transfers with Russia-affiliated vessels across 2023 and 2024. Vasily Lanovoy was also flagged for calls in Iran, Russia, and Venezuela, with loitering, ship-to-ship activity, and dark activity contributing to its high-risk profile.