Dark fleet ship-to-ship transfers off Malaysia more than double
Despite a promised crackdown last year the waters off the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia remain a favoured spot for dark fleet activity according to UANI
While the US, EU, and UK are starting to take stronger enforcement action against sanctions busting vessels dark fleet ship-to-ship (STS) oil transfers off the East Coast of Peninsula Malaysia have doubled over the last year.
“Business is booming for the dark fleet market,” Charlie Brown, Senior Advisor on Shipping of United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI), based in Singapore tells Seatrade Maritime News.
Brown tracks ship-to-ship transfers and tankers anchored in EEZ off the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia. It’s a region that has become a hotbed of activity in recent year for dark fleet vessels transferring crude oil from the likes of Iran, Russia and Venezuela in STS operations onto vessels bound primarily to China.
According to Brown, who uses a mix of satellite imagery and AIS tracking, he has been able to confirm around 60 ships laden with Iranian oil in the area, and another 30 vessels with cargoes from Russia (10) and Venezuela (20) waiting for STS operations.
The number of STS pairs that Brown is observing has doubled to around 13 – 15 in recent weeks compared to 5 – 7 a year earlier.
A list of dark fleet ships provided to Seatrade Maritime News by PoleStar Global based on crude tankers that have either not reported a position or not moved since 15 December 2025 showed a cluster of tankers offshore along the coast of eastern Peninsula Malaysia, outside the 12-mile limit, but inside the country’s EEZ.
