Distress or Deception? Sea Horse ‘Not Under Command’ While Delivering Cuba Gasoil

At a Glance

• The tanker Sea Horse, carrying Russian gasoil to Cuba, has been broadcasting that it is “not under command” and drifting in the Sargasso Sea for nearly three weeks.
• AIS patterns suggest the Hong Kong-flagged tanker spoofed its location and likely discharged its cargo of approximately 190,000 barrels of gasoil in Cuba in early March.
• The vessel engaged in deceptive shipping practices, including switching off its AIS during oil transfer and lacking Western insurance, which indicates potential sanctions circumvention.
• Sea Horse amended its signaled destination from Havana to “Gibraltar for orders” due to increased scrutiny of inbound cargoes to Cuba.
• The alleged delivery takes place amid Cuba’s severe fuel shortage and disruption to supplies, underscored by a nationwide blackout on March 16.

Sea Horse, a medium range tanker sailing for Cuba laden with Russian gasoil has been broadcasting it is “not under command” and that it is drifting in the Sargasso Sea for nearly three weeks.

The Hong Kong-flagged tanker, which is not sanctioned, has AIS patterns that suggest the tanker spoofed its location and likely sailed to Cuba to discharge its cargo in early March. 

The cargo of around 190,000 barrels of gasoil was loaded via ship-to-ship transfer off Cyprus in early February and the tanker signaled its next destination as Havana, later amending this to “Gibraltar for orders” amid increased scrutiny of inbound cargoes to the island.

After sailing across the Atlantic in mid-to-late February, Sea Horse signaled that it stopped some 1300 nautical miles from Cuban waters and began drifting at speeds of less than 1 knot while signaling it is not under command.

Deceptive Maneuvers of the Sea Horse

The tanker has already undertaken other deceptive shipping practices, including switching off its AIS while undertaking the transfer of Russia oil, and has no Western insurance, another indicator it is involved in sanctions circumvention.

If the tanker had arrived while dark, and spoofing its location, this would have been the first confirmed arrival of a refined products cargo at the island since early January.

Cuba’s Fuel Shortage and Geopolitical Context

A nationwide blackout across Cuba on March 16 underscored the impact a US blockade on oil imports and disruption to fuel supplies is having on the island, with the last cargo tracked via AIS, from Mexico, seen arriving in early January. 

Venezuela had been the main supplier to Cuba until the capture of president Nicolás Maduro on January 3, which saw the U.S. take control of Venezuela’s national oil company, PDVSA.

The U.S. issued an executive order on January 29 authorizing tariffs on imports from countries that supplied oil to the island, while U.S. naval assets have deterred some tankers over February from attempting to ship energy commodities into the country.