The Russian Government has confirmed the completion of fuel oil pumping from the submerged sections of the tankers Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 in the Kerch Strait.
The government said on September 25 that a commission comprising representatives of environmental regulator Rosprirodnadzor, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, and the Russian Marine Rescue Service had verified the work.
The submerged sections will be raised by authorised services and agencies, “in the normal course of their work,” the government said. It gave no date for the operation.
The government first reported pumping complete on August 21, when it said monitoring of the Black Sea and nearby coastline was continuing.
The September statement said the affected shoreline and waters along Krasnodar Territory, Crimea, and Sevastopol had been cleaned. It reported the disposal and reuse of more than 185,000 tonnes of contaminated sand and soil.
Clean sand has been spread on affected beaches in Anapa.
Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Savelyev said that, “the environmental consequences and risks have been eliminated.”
Satellite imagery obtained five days after the August announcement showed oil films near the submerged stern of Volgoneft-212 and bow of Volgoneft-239, news outlet Caucasian Knot reported. The Sky Eye monitoring project suggested the images might indicate continued leakage after pumping.
The Marine Rescue Service confirmed pollution of unknown origin in a radar image dated September 16 near the wrecks. Monitoring analysts identified slicks in at least nine images taken between August 11 and September 16.
On September 23, ecologist Georgy Kavanoyan told Caucasian Knot that satellite images from several September dates showed slick-like marks extending from the cofferdams around the wreck sections. He said Sky Eye had shared the images.
The tankers were wrecked in the Kerch Strait on December 15, 2024, killing one crewmember. The vessels were carrying about 9,200 tonnes of fuel oil, TASS reported.
Russia’s Transport Ministry estimated that about 2,400 tonnes of petroleum products spilled into the sea. Additional slicks and a reported leak from the stern of Volgoneft-239 were recorded during the early response.